Alicia, I think you need a friend
by CharlotteL
Summary: Set in the present day it follows The Good Wife canon, although there are elements of AU as I introduce new characters from Will's and Diane's past. Alongside the here and now the story will be told through recollections and flashbacks. Diane thinks Alicia needs a friend and wants her to meet an old confidant of Will's, offering a side to the lawyer that she didn't know existed...
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is my first attempt at a story so hope you like it! I am including a song title with each chapter that I think represents or relates to the mood of the section.

 _You're My Best Friend_ (Queen)

May 2015 

In the aftermath of Alicia's withdrawal from the State's Attorney race and Kalinda's disappearance, late one night Diane and Alicia are talking in Diane's office.

"Alicia, I think you need a friend."

"Diane…" she says smiling and shaking her head slightly.

Diane interrupts her, "Wait, hear me out."

"OK, sorry." She bites her bottom lip.

"We all need friends, people we can talk to, laugh and share things with. I don't have many close friends, especially since some deserted me when I married Kurt. And," she pauses and her breathing quickens, "since Will died I have even fewer; I lost my best friend." She pauses again, smiles to herself remembering the lost lawyer and removes her glasses, playing with the arms in her hands. She takes a sharp intake of breath and steels herself before continuing. "I know you don't have many either and also feel the loss of Will and Kalinda very acutely. I think we're friends and are closer now than we have been for some time, which saddens me as it took Will's death to do that." Her eyes begin to tear as she looks at Alicia, who is rubbing her index finger under her right eye to stop herself from crying. "We aren't the only ones still hurting and feeling lonely, vulnerable even. It is for this reason that I want you to meet someone, a friend of mine," she pauses, "and a good friend of Will's."

Diane lets her last statement linger as the younger woman contemplates her response.

Alicia looks confused and a little taken aback. "Ohh-Kay," she says slowly. "Who? I, I , err," she stumbles over her words, in shock at Diane's intentions.

Diane continues. "Her name is Angela. She is a doctor and the daughter of an old friend of mine. If you want to meet her, I'll let her tell you more about herself and her friendship with Will."

"OK, erm…" she stops and sighs. "I'm not sure. I don't quite understand. You said she was a good friend, how did she know Will and why haven't I heard of her?" She said furrowing her brow.

"I know it is a little out of left field, to use one of Will's sports analogies, but she knew Will for a lot longer than I did and, although technically you knew him first, their relationship didn't have the hiatus that yours did. They first met in Baltimore and basically stayed friends for the rest of his life. They dated for a time, way back in the last century," she says, trying for Alicia's sake to make light of the romance, "and had a deep love for one another. That love was founded on friendship and although they didn't live in each other's pockets, they always knew they had each other."

Alicia takes a sip from her glass, the golden liquid burning the back of her throat. "So why didn't I know her?"

"Well, when you first started at the firm she wasn't in Chicago so there wasn't any opportunity to meet her. And, I think, that when she moved to the city you and Will were," she looks to the ceiling as she searches for the right word, " _involved_ , and he wanted to keep you apart. I think he didn't want the two women he loved, in very different ways," she noted, sweeping her right hand and glasses through the air, "to come together. He was scared of what might happen if you met and couldn't bear losing one of you from his life."

Alicia sighs and sits back in her chair. "I don't understand, how do _you_ fit in? Did she introduce you to Will? I thought you met through Stern?"

"David, Angela's father is an old friend, he moved to Chicago with Angela when his wife died. He is a former lawyer and emeritus professor of international law at Northwestern. He's quite revered and I think Will said he even gave a seminar at Georgetown when you were there. I met David through work and I've known Angie herself since she was a young girl, so over thirty years. Angela and I knew Will independently and it was Jonas Stern that brought us together." She smiles and her face begins to lighten as she continues, "There are some good stories out there of the early days of Stern, Lockhart & Gardner and Angela features in many of them," she chuckles. "But they are for another day."

Alicia nods and smiles at the older woman still unable to reply.

"She's a good person Alicia, and, she needs a friend too, probably more than you do. She has just returned to Chicago from a placement in Africa and is feeling a little isolated and bewildered. Like me she lost her best friend. But she was alone and thousands of miles away when she found out Will had died. What makes it worse is that she didn't know for four days and couldn't come back for the funeral, so while we had each other and could mourn him collectively, she had nobody." Diane pinches the skin at the top of her nose and sniffs quietly trying to stop her eyes from tearing.

Tears form in Alicia's eyes as she recalls the pain of Will's death, the rawness she felt and the endless search for answers after the tragedy. "I would like to meet her," she says, smiling at Diane. Diane nods and the two women raise their glasses in a toast.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: This chapter talks about the night Will and Angela met at a legal conference in Maryland.

 _I Don't Want To Miss A Thing_ (Aerosmith)

Baltimore, October 1998

Angela was tired; she'd had a long day and spending the evening in the company of Baltimore's finest attorneys didn't fill her with the utmost joy. Still, she was here for a reason and was looking forward to dinner with the most important man in her life. She smiled at herself in the mirror, reapplied her red Coromandel lipstick and sprayed some No. 5 over her décolletage. She rarely wore make-up or perfume in deference to her job, so when she did, she made sure it was Chanel. Slipping the familiar glass bottle into her purse, she checked her watch: 6:10pm. She really should make an appearance.

She climbed out of her car, smoothed her dress and noted her reflection in the side window: happy with what she saw, she pressed the button on her key fob, heard the familiar clunk as the car locked and walked towards the hotel.

As she entered, there was a moderate buzz as the assembled throng chattered, networked and pretended to laugh at each other's jokes. She scanned the room. _Damn!_ She thought to herself, _can't see him_. _Oh well, best get a drink_. She made her way towards the long table that served as a makeshift bar. It was busy. She sighed, hoping she didn't have to wait too long.

Will Gardner exited the bathroom and looked at his watch, he had time for a drink. Looking over at the bar he spotted an unfamiliar figure. It was her hair that he noticed first; it was a vibrant, fiery, flame colour, brighter than a Titian painting, but not artificial. It was slightly wavy and fell to her shoulders. She had her back to him, wearing a long-sleeved navy blue dress that stopped at her knees and seemed to go in and out in all the right places, creating a wonderful hourglass shape that excited him.

As he walked across the room, he fastened the top button of his suit jacket before placing his left hand in the pocket of his pants. He approached the table and excused himself after banging into an elderly male lawyer in his eagerness to fill the space next to her.

At last it was her turn. She asked for bourbon, no ice, with a dash of Angostura bitters and a slice of lemon.

"That sounds good," Will smiled, turning to his left to look her.

She turned to face him and he met her dark brown eyes, "Hi," he said softly.

"Hello," she replied, taking in his face and surreptitiously looking him up and down. "Can I get another one?" she gestured to the bartender as she handed Will her drink. "Thanks," he said.

That accent, Will thought, English, but not quite Minnie Driver, instead she had a Midwestern twang he couldn't figure out. It intrigued him, just as her silhouette had intrigued him from across the room.

The bartender handed her a fresh drink and she removed the swizzle stick, looking up at Will as she passed it between her lips before placing it on the table.

"I'm Will. Will Gardner, from Osterman, Lee and Canfield," he said, fumbling to present his nametag.

"Angela Austen, I work at Mercy."

"OK, are you in-house counsel?" He asked, taking a sip of his drink and nodding at approval of the taste.

"Oh, no, no," she said waving her hand in front of her, "I'm not a lawyer, I'm a third year resident," she smiled at him, bobbing her head before adding, "I'm really just here for the free bar," giving him a cheeky wink.

"I see." He said, chuckling and putting his hand gently in the small of her back, pulling her towards him and guiding the two of them into the centre of the room. "Well then, I shall make sure you get good use out of it, and, at these events, it is usually the best part," he smirked.

She laughed at him and smiled before taking a large mouthful of her drink. He noted that her laugh was quite feminine, somewhere between a girly giggle and something more flirtatious. He liked that, it made the corners of his mouth turn up and presented him with a challenge, and, given her body language, maybe not a very difficult challenge.

"Thanks," she replied. "I kinda have to listen to the keynote too, and, show a little enthusiasm," she said, glancing upwards and pulling her face into a wry smile, before taking another sip of her drink.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Will spluttered, "are you here with somebody? I hadn't realised you were on a date, not the most romantic choice, I certainly wouldn't have brought you here." He regretted saying it as soon as the words left his mouth and wished the ground would swallow him up or that he could drown in his bourbon. "Sorry, again, I mean no disrespect," he said, again stumbling over his words and raising a hand in front of him.

Angela smiled and chuckled. She placed her left hand on his right forearm, which made him tense with surprise, "Well, I am here with somebody, but not on a date." She smiled, "I'm here with my Dad. And," she paused, "your concern is cute, trying to rescue me from dull lawyers and mediocre liquor."

Will smirked and realised that his goofy grin probably gave far too much away. He was interested in this woman and hoped he didn't appear too much of a fool. "I just thought," he began, before stopping and realising what she had said. He was a clever lawyer but sometimes he could be incredibly stupid. "Wait," he paused, shaking his head and pointing his finger, "your Dad, you're here with your Dad?"

'Yeeaah," she answered, puzzled.

"Austen!" Will sighed and titled his head back as the pieces fell into place, "your Dad is David Austen?"

She nodded in confirmation.

"Wow! Sorry, I'm not normally like this."

"Yeah, you're very smooth. Like Bond," she said with a light sarcastic tone, sliding her hand up and down his arm. He felt the lightness of her touch through the cloth of his jacket and it made him tingle. She was surely flirting with him; it couldn't just be his imagination. He smiled and briefly closed his eyes, lost in thought.

"I heard your Dad speak when I was in law school and he was amazing, so natural and engaging."

She smiled and ran her tongue over her bottom lip. "Well, he does like talking, guess we're similar in that respect, never knowingly quiet!"

Will chuckled and finished his drink. "Want another?" He asked, titling his empty glass towards her.

"Thanks," she replied, handing him her glass. "I'll pop to the bathroom and meet you back here." He watched as she turned and walked away, before pushing his own path through the crowd to the bar. As he waited in line he thought over what he had said and kicked himself a second time for suggesting the Bar Association was date night. He shook his head and cursed himself under his breath, " _Idiot_."

Drinks in hand, he returned to meet Angela who was back in roughly the same spot. Giving her a drink he noted that they should be going in to hear her Dad's lecture. "Shall we?" He gesticulated towards the main room. She replied, "Yes" and linked her left arm through his right as they followed the surge of people into the room. Will smiled to himself and felt more confident than he had been a few minutes ago, _yes_ , she was definitely flirting.

They found two seats about halfway down the auditorium and as they sat down Will gave a nod of recognition to a couple of people he recognised from court. "Will," she whispered, leaning towards him, he could feel her warm breath on his neck and smell the soft scent of her perfume, "where would you take me on a date?" He looked at her smiling at him and reached over to take her hand in his, squeezing it gently, he replied, "You'll have to wait and see."


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: This chapter follows on directly from Chapter Two describing the night Will met Angela.

 _I'm Into Something Good_ (Herman's Hermits)

Baltimore, October 1998

"I'll just say bye to my Dad," she told Will as he stood chatting to a couple of guys he knew from the State's Attorney's Office. She walked back into the side room where they had had dinner, saying, "We're heading out, going to get a drink somewhere," as she placed her hands on her father's shoulders. "So the old man is forgotten, eh?" He replied with a sarcastic tone, making the remaining men around the table laugh. Angela laughed easily with them, "Thanks for dinner and for accommodating Will," she said, planting a kiss gently on his right cheek, "I'm going to take a cab, leave the car here and pick it up tomorrow."

He smiled at his daughter who was now leaning over him, her arms draped round his neck, "I'm really pleased you came Angie," he said, patting her arm. "I'm pleased I came too," she grinned at him. She took a small bunch of keys from her purse and offered them to him, "Here are the spare keys to my apartment," she paused, but he interrupted, "So don't wait up?" he questioned, winking at her.

"Something like that," she smiled back, "I'll speak to you in the morning," kissing him again.

"Night Angie."

"Night Dad."

She quickly crossed to the door and found herself looking at Will, who was now alone in the lobby. The image in front of her made her heart beat a little faster. He was leaning back against a pillar, his tie loosened, the top button of his shirt undone and his hands in the pockets of his pants. Smiling, he pushed himself off and walked the few feet towards her. Putting his right arm across her shoulders he pulled her into him, whispering, "For the record Angela, I'm also really pleased you came." She stretched her left arm across his back and gave him a gentle squeeze. They both looked in opposite directions as they walked out of the main entrance, Will nodding a thanks to the doorman who held the glass door open for them, but Angela was sure they were both grinning.

They walked in happy silence through the Mount Vernon neighbourhood for a few minutes, quickly getting in step with each other, before Will spoke, "If I forget to tell you later, thanks for a great evening." Angela laughed, "So corny, but it isn't over yet." She felt Will's arm leave her shoulder, run down her arm and, as his fingertips brushed the skin of her palm to take her hand in his, she felt a tingle rush through her body.

As they approached their destination, Angela looked up at the imposing, fortress-like building that she thought was beautiful – its greyish-silver and terracotta façade standing out from those around it and demonstrating the early twentieth-century style of the Baltimore landmark. She knew it was in need of some love, but it was still here, after nearly a century. Will squeezed her hand, "Meet me at the Belvedere," he said turning to her, "come on, let's go to the 13th Floor, then I'll take you somewhere for a real drink." She smiled at him and they walked into the brass and marble covered lobby.

Getting on the elevator, Will pressed the button for the thirteenth floor and let his hand fall back by his side. Angela moved closer to him and reached out to take his hand in hers. He smiled and began to rub the back of her hand with his thumb which made her giggle, ever so softly to herself, which she hoped had gone unnoticed. The doors opened straight onto the bar, which like the rest of hotel needed attention and resembled a cheap lounge that did not befit the prior glamour of the Belvedere when it had welcomed Hollywood actors and royalty. The low lighting only highlighted the magnificence of the seven-foot windows along the north and south walls that were the main draw for contemporary visitors.

Angela walked over to the south side windows, marvelling at the sight of Baltimore twinkling beneath them. Looking downtown she could see the Washington Monument in Mount Vernon Place and titled her head with a little sadness, "I love the Washington Monument in DC, what it represents and the stories associated with its construction. Shame it's closed. Our one isn't quite the same, even though it had the same designer!"

"When it's open to the public again, we'll go."

"They've only just started, I don't think it's gonna be finished for two years," she laughed.

"Well, then," he said, moving behind her and putting his arms around her to rest his head against the top of hers, " _let's all meet up in the year 2000, won't it be strange when we're all fully grown_ ," he sang in the style of Pulp's Disco 2000 that made Angela laugh out loud. She put her arms on top of his and felt him hug her tight. In that moment she realised she really was falling for Will Gardner.

"Do you know that the tip of it is made of aluminium, which at the time it was built was as valuable as silver?" Will nodded and Angela continued, "Before it was placed at the apex, it was put on public display at Tiffany's, in New York, and people could say they stepped over the top of the Washington Monument. So cool, really beats Audrey Hepburn and that pastry!" They laughed and Will thought to himself that he really wanted to get to know her better.

"Something that you might not know," Will began, "George Washington owned a whiskey distillery."

"Uh-huh," she replied closing her eyes and resting her head against him. Will could see their combined reflection in the window and smiled.

"Should we get a drink, I know a great little place," he asked her quietly, not really wanting to move.

"Sure," she said, albeit a little reluctantly.

…

Back on the street, Will took her hand as they walked the short distance to The Brewer's Art bar. They entered through the basement door and Angela took in the room, a look of astonished pleasure on her face, "I didn't know this was here," she said.

"It opened about two years ago, kinda cool, they brew their own beer and have a fabulous whiskey selection."

"Hmmm," she replied, "interesting _… very_ interesting."

Will guided her through dark room and through an arched brick doorway into an area that held the bar. It was warm, cosy and made her feel happy. "Do you want to sit at the bar or somewhere else?" he asked gesturing at a table in one of the arched, dimly let nooks. "Bar," she answered positively.

Angela sat down and placed her purse on the floor by her feet, looking at the bottles behind the bar. Will took off his suit jacket and hung it over the back of his chair, asking, "What do you fancy?" as he rolled his shirt sleeves up to the elbow.

"Now, that's a leading question if I ever heard one counsellor," she laughed, reaching out and rubbing the fingers of her right hand in light circles on his bare forearm. He smiled coyly at her before saying he would have one of their house beers and she nodded, "I'll trust your judgement."

The conversation was easy as they drank and shared stories. Will was enthralled by her voice and thought he could listen to her all evening. She was different to the women he usually dated and had a confidence that he liked, a confidence that he saw reflected in himself.

"Excuse me," he said getting up to go to the bathroom and squeezing her shoulder as he left, "be right back."

"OK, I'll get us another round." She caught the bartender's eye and ordered two more drinks.

Will shook his head, smiling broadly as he washed his hands. He wasn't quite sure how his night had progressed so quickly, but he wasn't complaining. Less than five hours ago he walked into the hotel lobby ready for the evening session and saw her from across the room. Since then he'd had dinner with a prominent law professor along with several top litigators and judges, God knows what they thought of him, he chuckled to himself, and somehow he'd managed to get this beautiful, smart woman to go out with him. Or did she get him to go out with her? He wasn't sure who picked whom up, but he didn't care, tonight he would enjoy whatever the world threw at him.

Angela leaned forward on the bar, casually looking at the menu as she waited for their drinks. Will took a breath, walked up behind her, turned her chair to face him and placed his right hand on the side of her face, lifting it towards his. He pressed his lips to hers, kissing her gently. He felt her smile as he pulled away which only served to broaden his own grin. Seeing the positive reaction to that first kiss, he cupped her face in both hands and kissed her again, this time more passionately, his tongue rubbing her lips heightening the giddy sensation she felt before finally entering and exploring the rest of her mouth. As they gave in to the moment, their tongues lightly caressed each other and, as she gently sucked the tip of his tongue in her lips, he could feel himself getting breathless. He pulled back and began to place little kisses around her mouth, grazing his teeth over her bottom lip, he felt her giggle softly with pleasure. Reaching up to place her hands on the back of his neck, she mused his hair and pulled him a little closer, not wanting the moment to end. She noticed Will's hands had found their way around her back, one was gently caressing the nape of her neck, sending a wonderful tingling through her body and the other holding on to her tightly, his thumb tracing a figure of eight pattern around the clasp of her bra. Angela could feel her heartbeat pick up with the passion and felt Will's heart beat strongly in his chest; it was a nice feeling to know she had such an effect on the guy. Finally, the kissing became less furtive and they lingered as their lips met for the final time.

As they parted, he rested his forehead against hers, closing his eyes, saying under his breath, "I want you." Angela titled her head a little and placed a soft kiss on his nose, "Ditto."

Will held her tightly for what seemed like forever, but was in reality only a minute, before kissing the top of her head and sitting back down on the stool next to her. They looked at each other for a few seconds before beginning to laugh, Will noted her wonderful girly giggle, smiled to himself, slowly shook his head from side to side and took a long draw from his glass.

…

Half an hour later they were in a cab driving towards Will's apartment. He felt a warm sensation pulse through his body as she placed her hand gently on his thigh, smiling her turned to her and placed his hand on top of hers, lacing their fingers together.

As the apartment door closed behind him he glanced at Angela who smiled back, "So, Mr Gardener, what do you want to do now?"

"I want to kiss you," he replied closing the gap between them and gently moving her backwards so her back was pressed against the wall. She let her purse drop to the floor as he rested his hands on the plaster behind her and kissed her, forcefully yet passionately, feeling her groan with pleasure as his lips moved from her mouth to her cheek to her neck. She moved her hands upwards and pulled at his jacket, he shrugged it off his shoulders and threw it to the side. Will put his arms around her and began to move her away from the wall and towards the bedroom.

The restraint he showed in the bar was long forgotten as he pulled at the zipper at the back of her dress, moving his hand inside the fabric he teased it off her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. She stepped out of the crumpled garment and he took in the sight before him. Her pale skin highlighted the dark blue of her silk underwear and felt his breathing quicken. She moved her hands to his belt, undoing the buckle and the hook fastening before moving down to unzip his pants.

She pushed him back onto the bed and straddled him, leaning forward to pull up his white t-shirt. He acquiesced and held his arms up as she pulled it over his head, planting soft kisses on his exposed chest. Moving down, she let her lips linger over his boxer shorts, feeling his erection beneath. She slid her hands under the waistband and pulled them down with Will kicking them off over the end of the bed.

"Wait, do we need…?" Will questioned, looking down.

She giggled as she licked the centre of her top lip with her pointed tongue, knowing exactly what he meant, shaking her head "No, everything's taken care of," she replied.

"Good to know," he said through a smile, as he planted a row of kisses down her neck, making her quiver with anticipation.

Angela lent forwards again, moving her wet lips slowly up his neck to behind his ear, smothering his skin with soft pecks before his mouth grabbed at hers, furtively moving his tongue against hers and making her gasp with pleasure. Slowly, she pulled away and traced kisses down his chest, past his groin and onto the soft skin of his inner thighs, he took in a quick breath as he felt a warm sensation emanate through his lower body. She looked up and met his gaze before taking him in her mouth, moving up and down slowly, twisting her tongue around his shaft knowing she was pleasing him. She started to lick quickly, pulsating him with the edge of her tongue before taking him as if she was eating an ice-cream, her tongue moving over the entire surface in a steady rhythm that made him moan quietly with pleasure. Knowing she wanted to leave him crying out for more, she moved to kiss his toned chest, working her way back up his body. Before she reached her destination, she felt his strong arms on her, flipping her over so that he was on top, locking his lips to hers and gently entering her. He moved slowly, stimulating her senses, Angela felt herself throb as his initial shallow thrusts gave way to a deeper, intense presence that sent a warm sensation through her body.

...

Angela opened her eyes and groaned quietly as the bright morning light streamed into the bedroom. She turned over and was surprised to find the other side of the bed empty. Sighing lightly, she sat up and listened: silence. She stood up and found Will's discarded shirt, pulling it on she instinctively rolled up the sleeves as she walked into the hallway. Chuckling to herself as she remembered him doing the same thing last night.

Will was sitting cross-legged on the floor in his office dressed in black boxers and a white t-shirt. He had old lever arch files and notebooks around him; one file was open on his knee as he flicked through the pages. Gently lowering herself to the floor behind him, she kissed the side of his neck asking, "What you doing?"

"Morning," he responded, turning to kiss her full on the mouth. "I was looking through my papers from law school, seeing what I'd written when your dad came to talk."

"Uh-huh, did you find anything?"

"Yeah, some stuff about working for the UN, being ethical _yada yada_ , but what is interesting is that I wrote about you," he said teasingly.

"What?"

"Well, not really about you, I remember he mentioned that he couldn't go to the traditional after speech dinner as he was meeting his daughter, who was a student at Johns Hopkins, but he invited the class to join him for a drink later in the evening."

"Yeah."

"And some guy asked if his daughter was hot, he said something like he thought she was beautiful, but he was biased, really dealt with the heckling well."

"OK, so what _exactly_ did you write down?"

"Daughter – med student – hot. The Tombs, 9pm." He chuckled, as she playfully slapped him on the back of the head. "I was all about brevity, plus, you are hot," he said, throwing down the file and taking her face in his hands, kissing her passionately. Moving his lips across her cheek and down her neck, he felt her moan as his hand slid under the loose shirt and caressed her right breast before grazing the delicate skin over her ribs that made her arch in pleasure. She ran her hand up his back to the nape of his neck, mumbling his name as she ran her fingertips seductively over his scalp. Feeling him tense against her, she added, "Let's go to the bedroom."

….

As he watched the elevator doors close he realised he still had the stupid grin on his face. He turned back into his apartment, picked up his coffee and went to sit on the sofa, thinking he would read through the case files in front of him before showering and heading into the office. It was when he finished his coffee that he realised he forgot to ask for her phone number and for the second time in twenty-four hours, branded himself an idiot. He also noted, sadly, that she didn't ask for his.

He sighed, looking forlornly at the empty mug. How could he be that stupid? How could he rectify the situation? He knew where she worked so he could go to the hospital and wait for her to turn up, no, that could be seen as stalking. He knew who her father was…no, he shut that thought straight down, he couldn't get in touch with him and ask for his daughter's number. He contemplated his next move as he went back to the kitchen to pour himself another cup of java. It was then he saw the familiar yellow square stuck to the coffee pot with 'Angela' and her phone number written on it. He laughed before clenching his fist in mock victory, "Thank you," he said out loud. It was the most grateful he had been in a long time and was so pleased he couldn't wait to call her up. He found his jacket on the floor the other side of the counter and put his hand into the inside breast pocket for his cell, ouch, he thought as he felt something pointy poke under one of his fingernails. He reached his fingers round his cell and removed it along with the offending cardboard. He recognised the Mercy logo and smiled. Turning the card over he saw the words, ' _In case you didn't want any more coffee, A x_ ,' he felt his heart beat a little faster and the grin on his face broaden.

 **A/N: In the next chapter Alicia will finally meet Angela. I just wanted to give a little backstory first.**


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: This chapter covers the initial meeting between Alicia and Angela. Sorry it is short, but the evening will continue in later chapters, I just wanted to introduce it here.

 _Angie_ (The Rolling Stones)

Chicago, May 2015 

Alicia was alone in her apartment. She sat at her dressing table; her eyes were closed as she contemplated the evening to come. Her mind turned to Will, first the eager young man she met at Georgetown and then to the passionate lawyer who saved her at Lockhart Gardener. Letting out a deep sigh, she smiled as she opened her eyes to look at herself in the mirror, " _You still take my breath away Gardner,"_ she thought to herself. She brushed her dark hair, applied a little blush to her cheeks and rubbed her lips together before sweeping some colour across them. Standing up, she looked at her outfit in the mirror; she was wearing a pair of black dress pants, a light wool sweater in her favorite shade of red and black pumps. Not too dressy but good enough to have a drink with Diane and the unknown quantity of Angela.

She'd told Grace she was going out with Diane to meet an old friend of Will's and Grace said that she thought it was a good thing. _"You need friends Mom,"_ she'd said hugging her. Grace wasn't inherently nosy, not like Owen; she didn't tell him, as she was afraid he'd turn up at the bar, get drunk and say inappropriate things or question Angela like it was _60 Minutes_. Grace had only asked one question: what was she called? Alicia had told her, "Angela, she's called Angela." Grace replied that the name meant 'Messenger of God' and that maybe it was a sign. Alicia had smiled at her daughter when she said that, but scoffed at the idea of God, or Will, trying to tell her something. But it made Grace happy, so she just pulled her close, kissed the top of her head and told her she loved her.

…

As her music system belted out nineties rock, Angela fixed herself a drink: bourbon, dash of Angostura bitters and lemon. She sat down on the sofa and sighed. For all her bravado and telling Diane she would love to meet Alicia, tonight was going to be difficult and she wasn't sure how she was going to get through it. She stood, taking the remains of her drink with her and walked to her bedroom. Placing the glass on the bedside table, she said out loud, _"This is your fault,"_ as she looked at a picture of a much younger Will, before smiling and tapping the top of the picture frame with her fingers.

Angela didn't normally fret about what to wear. She had a basic work wardrobe of slacks, jumpers and blouses that were often thrown aside in favor of scrubs and, outside of work, she lent towards dresses in tried and tested styles that accentuated her small waist and created her coveted hourglass figure. Tonight was different. She was meeting Alicia. The Alicia. The Alicia that won Will's heart over twenty years ago. She had to make a good first impression and, if she could look hot doing it, all the better. Standing in her bathrobe she perused the contents of her closet and noticed the blue dress she wore the first night she met Will. She smiled to herself, thinking she had a lot to thank that dress for, but wearing it tonight would be weird.

Finally, she decided on a black and white Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress that had a deep v-neck and leather accents. Teaming it with her favorite tuxedo-style jacket and black patent kitten heels she was happy and thought Will would approve. Just as she was closing the cap of her traditional lipstick, smiling at the interlocking capital Cs, there was a knock at her apartment door. She opened it to hear, "Taxi for Austen!" from a slightly apprehensive Kurt. "You ready?"

"Yeah," she nodded, grabbing her purse and closing the door behind them.

…

When Alicia's cab pulled up at the kerb, she noticed Diane waiting outside the bar. As she paid the fare and got out of the vehicle, she saw Diane walk towards her and smile, "I'm glad you came, Angela is inside," she said, hugging her.

Alicia took a shallow breath and smiled weakly at Diane, "I'm not sure what I'm doing here Diane," she admitted.

"You are meeting someone who loved, and was loved by, Will," she smiled at her, "and don't worry Alicia, you aren't the only one who is nervous about this evening," she added, trying to reassure her.

Alicia smiled, "Thanks," wiping her now sweaty palms on her pants, hoping Diane didn't notice.

"Come on, let's poke the bear!" Diane added squeezing her arm, as the two women laughed before making their way inside.

Waiting for Diane to return to the table with Alicia, Angela began to feel her heart race, as anxiety gripped her. She felt sick, her stomach doing flips and making her want to run. Run away. Get the hell out of the bar. But she was rooted to the spot, unable to move from her seat. Although she had the advantage over Alicia, as she knew who she was, what she looked like and knew about her relationship with Will, she was still apprehensive about meeting her. What will Alicia make of her? What impression has she formed in the intervening nine days since Diane broached the subject? Has she looked her up on ChumHum? Before she could consider the answers, she saw Diane moving through the crowd, chatting to the dark-haired woman beside her: Alicia.

Taking a deep breath, Angela stood up and held out a hand, "Hello Alicia, it's good to finally meet you," she said smiling before sitting back down in the booth. "I would say the same, but I didn't know you existed until a week ago," Alicia replied, letting out a small, nervous laugh.

"We got some wine," Diane said as Alicia settled herself across from Angela. Diane poured red wine into three long-stemmed glasses and passed one to each of the younger women.

Alicia took in the woman before her. She was not quite what she expected, Will's women were often much younger, but thinking to herself, given the few details and the timeline Diane had given her, she would be about her own age. Alicia noted her red hair, the pale skin like her own and the ample cleavage, but she was drawn to her necklace. It was a beautiful, large, pear-shaped aquamarine surrounded by brilliant diamonds; Alicia liked the way it sparkled when it caught the light. "Sorry for staring, but your necklace is gorgeous."

"Thanks, it's Tiffany," she smiled, catching the pendant in her hand and moving it from side to side along the chain, "it was a present."

"I've always liked it," Diane added smiling broadly at Angela. "So," she began again, "I asked you two here so that you could get to know each other, as you were both very important and close friends to Will and I thought it would help you both, and me, to… talk and, hopefully, all be friends. I've felt like the piggy in the middle for far too long." Angela chuckled at the last part, before Diane continued, "we three have very few true friends and, having each lost a great one, I hope that by sharing our experiences and love, we could help each other heal and maybe, even offer an element of closure."

Diane looked over at Angela who was trying to stifle a gentle sob, before turning her attention to Alicia, who smiled nervously and closed her eyes for a few brief seconds.

Angela rubbed her hand over her face, picked up her glass, took a short intake of breath before saying, "OK, before we start, I think we should raise a glass to Will, who would be wetting his pants if he knew the three of us were getting together," she giggled, " _abiit nemine salutato_." The three women lifted their glasses in unison, clinking them together over the centre of the table, "To Will," they chorused.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, glad you like it!

 _Miss You Nights_ (Smokie)

Chicago, May 2015

The three women sipped their wine before Angela began, looking over at Alicia, "I know a lot about you, from Will and Diane, so I have a head start here. I'm also aware of the media attention surrounding you and your family." Alicia bit her bottom lip and looked down at the table. "I guess you have lots of questions for me," Angela added, taking a drink from her wine.

Alicia took a breath and nodded her head, pulling her bottom lip in over her teeth, "Yes, I have lots," she said, a weak smile crossing her lips. She noted that the woman opposite her seemed to have taken charge of the conversation and she suspected that it was a hangover from her day job, taking control. Alicia was aware of how calm Angela seemed, but she guessed this was, again, a kind of front, trying to hide the pain of Will's death and her nerves over this evening, if she was to believe Diane.

"There are so many things I want to know about your friendship with Will, especially the years you spent with him before I came to the firm. I hope that over time you can fill in the blanks," she said nervously. "But, let's start at the beginning, how did you two meet?"

"Fair question," Angela smiled at Alicia. "We met at a Bar Association conference back in Baltimore. My Dad was speaking and I'd gone to listen to him and then have dinner together. I met Will in the lobby beforehand, we got talking and I ended up bringing him to the dinner with Dad and his cronies – Will told me later he was quite intimidated by them all, especially if you factor in that one of the guys around the table is now a Supreme Court Justice!" She laughed and Diane smiled at her. Angela took a drink of her wine, before continuing, "A lot of them knew me, some from me being very young, and they were a little wary of the crazy young lawyer who was potentially my date. They didn't know him," she paused, "hell," she said, throwing her head back against the booth, "I didn't know him," she chuckled, "and they were obviously concerned about conversation and disclosure, but as the evening progressed everyone relaxed and Will won them over, as was his way," she smiled to herself. "My Dad seemed to like him and it was good enough for me."

Diane chuckled to herself, a broad grin spreading her face.

Angela continued, "After dinner we went for drinks and I got to know him a little better and liked him," she sighed, "he was a lovely man and, well, one thing led to another and we ended up back at his apartment. You can imagine the rest."

Diane let out a hearty laugh, a laugh that said this wasn't the first time she had heard the story, but was enjoying it nonetheless.

Alicia took a deep breath, a look of puzzlement on her face, "You slept with him on the first date?"

Angela bobbed her head from side to side, biting her bottom lip, "Well, technically it wasn't a date… but yes, that is fairly accurate assessment." She smiled and chuckled to herself.

"OKaaay," Alicia said slowly. "I don't want to get too personal, so maybe we'll leave that," she added, slightly embarrassed. Angela nodded and took a drink of her wine as Alicia asked, "Why didn't I ever meet you when Will was alive?"

"Well, you starting at Stern, Lockhart and Gardner coincided with my fellowship in Madison," she paused, "so I think that is why we never met. When I moved back to Chicago, Will was totally smitten with you and wanted to keep us apart," she chuckled and let her head fall back against the booth, "probably scared of all the stories I could tell! You guys were apart for a long time and _a lot_ happened in that time," she said, taking a mouthful of her drink. "And then he took up with Tammy and it was, well, a bit _awkward_. We can save talking about her for another day, but for the record, there was something about her, I, I just didn't like her," her words were accompanied by her shaking her head and wrinkling her face, before taking another slurp.

Diane was smirking at her, adding, "She certainly didn't like you!" Her hand was gripped about her wine glass but her finger pointed in Angela's direction.

"No, no, she didn't. But with good reason."

Both Diane and Angela started to laugh.

Alicia smiled and joined in, "I wasn't her favourite either. She blamed me for the break-up and, well, she was partly correct," she said shifting a little uncomfortably in her seat and biting her bottom lip. _Alicia closed her eyes and remembered her night with Will after the Judge Ellerby trial and smiled to herself._

Her moment of recollection was broken by Angela. "She left," she said matter-of-factly, waving her arm away from her gesticulating flight. "She went to London. She hoped he would chase her, he didn't. She really only has herself to blame leaving Chicago's sixteenth most eligible bachelor on his own." She let the last comment lie for a minute while Diane giggled, a broad smile crossing her face as she remembered the magazine article.

"Then after Tammy went to London, you," she nodded at Alicia who was biting her bottom lip, "made Will _very_ happy," she said winking at the obviously embarrassed brunette. Angela finished her wine and began again with honest sincerity, "He was happy Alicia, he got what he always wanted," she paused, more to refill her glass than for dramatic effect, "you." Alicia could feel her cheeks reddening as the comment made her blush and feel a little uncomfortable.

"You were the one person I could never compete with, he'd put you on a pedestal since Georgetown and you were the love of his life, however corny that might sound."

Alicia smiled and looked down at the glass of wine in her hand. She knew tonight might not be the most comfortable or relaxing evening in her calendar, but she wasn't quite prepared for the honest, forthright words of Angela Austen.

"He said he liked himself around you, and he didn't like himself around a lot of people. You made him a better person, he tried to impress you, in and out of court," she paused, looking at Diane who smiled and nodded in agreement.

"I still remember the day after you, how shall I put it," she looked up to the left as she searched for a polite term that wouldn't redden Alicia's cheeks any further, "spent the night together," adding air quotes with her fingers.

"He came to my apartment, quite early, with a bag of bagels in his hand and the stupidest grin on his face. He really looked the happiest he'd ever been. As I made coffee, he told me about the trial, the bar, the tequila and the most expensive night of his life. But you were worth it. He'd have paid double to have that time again. He might have taken the stairs though," she smirked at the woman opposite her. Alicia laughed remembering that the elevator stopped at virtually every floor and let a smile cross her face.

"But, you hurt him." Angela's statement stabbed at Alicia's heart and she sniffed as she turned away and looked out of the window.

"I know," she said quietly, rubbing a hand down her face.

"No," she sighed, raising her hand, "no, you don't," this was in a serious tone that was new to Alicia. "I know you said it wasn't personal, but it was and I don't give a damn about that. I've seen him at his lowest and most vulnerable and this isn't the time to talk about that. It won't make any difference and it won't resolve the pain. All I want is to remember my friend and, maybe, get to know you. But I couldn't ignore it, the elephant in the room. "

Alicia felt her eyes begin to tear with each passing word. She swallowed hard and tried to stop herself from crying, but it wasn't any good. A tear rolled down her cheek and she quickly rubbed it away with her hand. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "It was business."

"Well, there was more to it than that, but like I said, I don't want to go there. Not tonight. Let's keep the law and Lockhart/Gardner out of it."

"Agreed," added Diane, who was herself choking back tears remembering the anger, sadness and betrayal in Will's eyes when she told him that Alicia, Cary and the fourth years were leaving.

Angela refilled their glasses, emptying the bottle and signalling to the bartender to bring another.

….

Changing the subject and keen to know more, Alicia asked, "So, you dated Will?"

A broad smile lit up Angela's face, "Yes," she nodded, "we dated for nearly two years from '98 to 2000, when we were both living in Baltimore."

Alicia nodded, "That was a long time ago, Will said he was a different person then."

Angela sighed, "Yes, to some extent he was. He was young, hungry to succeed and had issues outside of the office that caused him some grief and needed to be dealt with. But a lot of the bad stuff happened before we met and then he had a little blip later, although I put that down to an ex-girlfriend of his. He moved on from her and did change, bringing the better aspects of his character to the fore and being increasingly careful of the ethical tightrope he walked. To me, he was the same person, but he was different around other people. I always got the charming, funny, sweet Will. He once said that he found it difficult to be bad around me as I would always find him out and that was one of the reasons he needed to become a better person. It always amused me," she paused, "given some of the things we did together." A new bottle of wine arrived at the table and Angela thanked the server.

"The ex-girlfriend, do you mean Celeste?" Alicia asked, leaning forward over the table.

"Yes, do you know her?"

"Yeah, we've met a few times, she's, err, different."

"Different is a polite way of putting it, I would call her a devious bitch," Angela replied. Diane laughed, "We tried to get her to join the firm a few years ago, but I'm glad we didn't now."

Alicia tried to get back on track, commenting that, "It is a bit strange that you stayed friends for so long once you broke up and seemingly were still close. What exactly was your relationship?"

"On a basic level, he was my best friend," she said smiling, her eyes a mix of pride and sadness. "I think nowadays he would be described as my BFF!" The three women laughed. "But in reality it was more complex than that."

"There was never any of the awkwardness you get when relationships end, because our relationship, essentially our friendship didn't end, we just stopped dating and decided we were far better as friends than lovers." She was halted by Diane's laughter and her interjection, "If I was in court, I'd say 'Objection!' as that's not strictly true, is it?" she said in a forceful, yet slightly sarcastic tone, pointedly waving her wine glass in Angela's direction.

Alicia and Diane both looked at Angela, who gave a half smile and turned to look out of the window. After a moment, she turned back to face Diane, "Sustained," she said quietly. "I'll rephrase," she added winking at Diane. "We got to a point, a crossroads, where we had to think carefully about the trappings of a long-term relationship, did we go down the marriage, children route, which neither of us really wanted and could so easily have turned us into enemies," she smiled sadly at Alicia who nodded for her to continue, "or did we break-up, stop dating and maintain our friendship?" She paused, taking a sip of her wine.

"In any other world, we probably would have stayed together, but given what we wanted from life at that point, we decided to stop dating but kept the physical side, at least on and off when we were both single." Alicia took a quick intake of breath. Diane nodded at Angela, pleased that the younger woman was being truthful and signalling to Alicia the strength and depth of the Gardner-Austen friendship.

Angela continued, "Having a close relationship was important to both of us, but it didn't have to be necessarily a romantic one. We trusted and loved each other and," she paused, "I know it is difficult for other people to comprehend that we could maintain a sexual relationship, being the archetypal 'friends with benefits', but we did." She took a sip of her wine, watching Alicia's face as she began again.

"Over the years we didn't simply have no-strings sex. The string that connected us was our friendship. Yes, we _loved_ each other, but we weren't _in love_ with each other at that point, so we were able to separate physical from romantic attachment. It would be a lie to say that we weren't emotionally connected and yes, sometimes there was jealousy over the other person being in a relationship. I was more jealous of Will having a girlfriend or a date, than I was of the girl actually dating Will. It was about me having to take a step back and spend less time with him than actually not being the one in bed with him." Alicia wrinkled her brow and sipped her wine.

"Will could be jealous of women moving on, seeing other people. His way of dealing with it was to simply stop caring, but with me, and you Alicia," she added pointedly, "that wasn't an option. I dated a few of his friends and colleagues over the years and he didn't like that. Made him crazy jealous," she chuckled as she spoke the last line.

"I had no idea of your relationship and I really don't know what to make of it," Alicia sighed.

"It was complicated," Angela replied, talking into her wine.

Diane touched Alicia's arm in a moment of solidarity, before beginning, "As I've said, Will loved you both and I am certain that you were the only women for whom he had true romantic feelings. Alicia, you appeared to be the one who got away, the woman he always wanted, his Juliet if you will." She felt her mouth dry up, so took a mouthful of her wine.

"Will and I once said that our friendship was like a marriage but without the sex. Now Angela, I've always thought that you offered him the other part of that marriage, but not just the sexual side, you also gave him the domesticity, the constancy and the love that he craved. I know you two had fun, but he loved it when you were together, doing normal things that couples did, even though for the most part, you weren't actually a couple. That is why you two worked, you were comfortable together, didn't have to pretend or try too hard and, unlike his relationship with Alicia," she dipped her head and smiled at the raven-headed lawyer, "you didn't have to hide."

Angela smiled at Diane, "I think it worked because we didn't have to be cautious, we knew each other really well and, unlike others in similar situations we didn't have to keep our feelings in check. We always kept in mind that we weren't dating anymore and just had fun as friends. We'd go to ballgames, have dinner, or just hang out together.

"However, I think we did go about it in the wrong way, all the advice and psychology of being 'friends with benefits'," she used air quotes over the phrase, "is to keep it simple, don't spend too much time together, don't leave your toothbrush at each other's homes, etc. We seem to have ignored all of those rules and my piano certainly killed the last one!"

Topping her glass up, Angela began, "Back in 2000, Will in particular was not ready for commitment, and, even years later he struggled with what he really wanted. When he was dating you he got to the point where he wanted something more than just work, he spent his life working, getting ahead, building the firm and felt there was something missing." Alicia took a sharp intake of breath and looked at Angela with a questioning look on her face, her brow furrowed in confusion. Angela continued, "But he didn't act on it. He didn't really know what was missing and wasn't sure how to go about filling the void. It was something he talked about with both Kalinda and I, but he just left it. Then you guys ended your relationship and it was just something that was pushed aside, unspoken but never forgotten."

Alicia stared out of the window contemplating what Angela had just admitted: Will wanted more out of life. She sighed and thought about what could have been.

….

"I'm surprised we never met as Will didn't exactly keep his girlfriends away from Lockhart/Gardner. Did you ever come to the office?"

"In the early days of Stern, Lockhart & Gardner I worked nearby and would pop in. But it was smaller then and I knew quite a few of the attorneys, so I was comfortable meeting him at work." She took a sip of her wine, "In recent years, I rarely came to the office, basically because Will was scared I'd come across you and I don't think many of the old guard are still there, save perhaps for David Lee."

Diane sniggers then laughs out loud, "It doesn't matter that you don't visit, you got the grand tour before we moved in."

"Diane!" Angela said in mock horror, "For God's sake!"

"What's this? Am I missing something?"

"No, nothing to tell," she smiled as she remembered going to Stern, Lockhart and Gardner with Will one night while the offices were being remodelled.

"Oh come on, you can't leave it like that, I'm constantly spilling it, what?"

"We may have made out in Will's office," she said quietly, looking down and swiping her thumb across the screen of her phone.

"You did more than that," Diane began in a scornful tone, before continuing with a smile on her face, "when I saw you, you were behaving like teenagers who'd just been caught fooling around during recess." Her smirk was infectious and Angela smiled at the memory, "Yes, you didn't half give us a fright when the lift opened and you walked onto the 28th floor!"

Diane laughed loudly, "Yes, so I gathered."

"That has got to be one of the most embarrassing moments of my life," Angela noted.

Alicia laughed and took a sip of her wine, before quickly putting down the glass and turning serious, her face draining of colour, "Will perjured himself," she said, leaning forward, both hands on the table. The two women were silenced and turned to face her.

"No he didn't," Diane said calmly, shaking her head.

"Yes, he did, he swore that he only had sex in his office once, with Tammy."

"He didn't lie Alicia," Angela said quietly, "technically we had sex in Jonas Stern's office."

Alicia sat back against the wall of the booth, wiping her left hand over her eye and down her cheek, "I don't understand, Stern's office?"

"Alicia," Diane began, leaning forward across the table, "when we were designing the office space, Jonas Stern was originally going to have Will's office and Will would take the room Stern that ended up with. Stern changed his mind and they switched, so no perjury."

Alicia took a deep breath remembering her encounters with Will in the office; she realised she was smiling and said quietly, "I miss him," as her eyes began to tear. Angela put down her glass and leant across the table to hold Alicia's hand, squeezing her fingers with her own, smiling at her she said, "Me too."

 **A/N: The next chapter will include another flashback of the early days of Will and Angela's friendship.**


	6. Chapter 6

_Dance The Night Away_ (The Mavericks)

Baltimore, Thanksgiving 1998

"Can I help you, Sir?" The desk clerk asked him as he stood in reception, scanning the room, seemingly looking for something or someone.

"Hi," Will said as he approached the counter, smiling at the woman behind it, "I'm looking for Dr. Austen, I think her shift should be finished soon."

"Do you need medical assistance?"

"No, no, sorry," he responded waving his hand in the air, "I'll just wait," he paused, "over there," he said pointing at the rows of plastic chairs behind him.

Will found a seat and smiled at the woman next to him as he set the takeout coffee cup he was holding on the floor. He took out his cell phone and, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees, he sent a text to his sisters, wishing them a Happy Thanksgiving. He felt a little guilty about not joining his family for the holiday, but he knew Angela was working and with her Dad living in Chicago, he didn't want her to be alone when she finished. They might not have been dating for long, but he couldn't get her out of his head and, as a result, he wanted to spend as much time with her as possible, drinking her in and feeling her body against his. He hadn't felt this way since Georgetown and hoped that he didn't screw up this relationship.

The nurse who had been chatting to the desk clerk when he walked in looked up at him and smirked before she disappeared down the hall. Entering the female locker room, she sat down on a bench in front of Angela. "Angie, there's a cute guy waiting in reception for you," she teased.

Angela smiled at her as she pulled her coat out of her locker, "What do you mean by _cute_?"

"Tall, brown hair, gorgeous puppy dog eyes, looks a bit lost…" she snickered.

Angela chuckled, "Will," she said, a broad smile crossing her face as she pulled on her jacket.

"He your latest?"

"Yeah, been together about six weeks."

"Wow! Girl, that's a long term relationship for you!" She continued to needle her friend, standing as Angela put the strap of her messenger bag across her body.

"Happy Thanksgiving Kathy, hope you don't have a tough evening, see you at the weekend," Angela said, hugging the nurse before heading out of the room.

Kathy crossed her arms and leant against the doorjamb as she watched Angela walk down the hall towards the waiting area. She smiled, happy for her friend.

Will sensed Angela before he saw her and turned to see her approach. "What are you doing here?" she asked smiling at him and quickening her pace. Standing, he picked up the coffee cup and grinned in her direction. When she reached him he offered her the cup, "I got you a coffee."

"Thanks," she said, taking a sip and tasting the alcohol along with the smooth roast. Laughing, she whispered, "What did you put in this?"

"Something to help you unwind," he laughed, pushing a few strands of loose hair out of her eyes before leaning in to kiss her cheek. He felt her free hand move round his back and pull him towards her before she kissed him full on the lips. As he pulled away, he said quietly, "I wanted to spend Thanksgiving with you."

Angela giggled before linking arms with him, "Me too," she said as she rested her head against his shoulder. "I thought you'd be with your family so didn't want to ask but, I'm so happy you're here. You really are pretty impressive."

"Can't believe you ever doubted me," he said sarcastically, kissing the top of her head as they walked towards the exit.

"I can't believe how warm it is," Angela noted as they headed to the parking lot.

"Balmy Thanksgiving!" He chuckled

"So, Mr Gardner, do you have a plan?"

"Well, you're off until Saturday evening, so I have forty-eight hours in which to entertain you," he said excitedly. "Thought I'd take you to your apartment to get some clean clothes, then we could go back to mine for some food and relaxation."

Will opened the passenger door for her, "Such a gentleman!" she mocked him as she got into the seat. He chuckled and shook his head as he walked around to the other side of the car.

"Relaxation, eh," she said suggestively, running her hand up his thigh and feeling him tense as she reached his groin. "You know that makes it very difficult to drive," he chuckled throwing her a big smile. She laughed and withdrew her hand, leaning back into her seat, closing her eyes and smiling to herself. Will was pleased that turning up at the hospital met with such a positive response and was very much looking forward to the next two days. This would be the first time that they had spent such a long period of time together and he could tell she was as excited as he was; he felt like he was twenty-two again.

…..

As Angela unlocked the door to her apartment Will put his arms around her waist and kissed her neck, eager for their time together to really begin. They entered the apartment with Will still holding her loosely. As the door swung closed, he spun her around to face him and placed his lips on top of hers, kissing her passionately, sliding his tongue forward as she opened her mouth to welcome him. Their tongues danced together as they shared a much longed-for kiss. Pulling away, Angela looked up at him, "Come on, I'll get a few things and we can go back to your place, since you have it all laid out," she said leading him into her bedroom. " _Laid_ did feature in my plans, Ange," he laughed causing her to giggle.

Will sat on her bed as Angela moved around the room packing a small bag for the next few days. "I don't think you'll need many clothes," Will chuckled, a broad crossing his face. "Oh, yeah, it is unseasonably mild," she teased moving over to the dresser and taking out a silk and lace babydoll, "so I won't be needing this?"

"Oh, no, you'll need that," Will replied grabbing her and throwing her on the bed as she laughed softly, he leant over her to whisper, "I can't wait to take it off you." Her laughter descended into a quiet giggle as she tugged at him, moving to get off the bed to continue packing, "Better hurry up then!" she winked. Will groaned, a combination of disappointment and longing.

Disappearing into her bathroom, she returned with toiletries and threw them into the bag, "Finished," she declared. Will literally bounced off the bed and pushed her into the hallway.

…..

Will took her bag through to his bedroom as Angela took off her jacket and sat down on the couch. "Hungry?" He asked as he returned to take in the sight of her in the dim light of his living room. "Mmm, yeah," she replied as he sat beside her, putting his left arm around her shoulders so she leant in and rested her head on his chest. "This feels good," she murmured nestling into his warm body, aware of how tired she really was. Will nodded, "Yeah, it does," closing his eyes and kissing the top of her head. They sat in silence for a few minutes before Will said, "Maybe we should have some food, you need to eat something," he knew it was what she really needed but he was reluctant to move, enjoying the closeness of her body and feeling her heart beat against his chest. "Yeah," she said moving to look him in the eyes, "but first can I have a shower, been a long day?"  
"Sure, I'll sort some food for when you're ready," he said, kissing her on the cheek and pulling her to her feet.

…..

Angela put on a pair of jeans and a soft cream sweater that hung off one shoulder; the shower had rejuvenated her, she felt relaxed and was looking forward to the next forty-eight hours. Walking barefoot into the living room she smiled at the scene in front of her.

Will had placed a sea of tea lights around the room, alongside some hurricane lamps that were usually in his bedroom, creating a warm, romantic glow. The throw pillows that were usually on his couch were strewn on the floor behind the low coffee table at which he had set two places for dinner.

"You look lovely," he smiled at her, proffering a bottle of beer.

"Thanks," she replied, taking the beer from him, "I thought you might have joined me in the shower," she added flirtatiously. "Maybe later," he replied catching her arm and sending a tingle through her body.

"The second game has just started, so we could watch that as we eat, then see what you fancy. I recorded the parade and the Lions game, so maybe we could watch them together too," he said before adding quickly, "no spoilers I promise, I haven't seen them either."

She chuckled, "That sounds good," taking a sip of her drink and putting her right arm around his waist. He placed his left arm on top of hers and pulled her closer, "You know I'm not a cook, but I've got a ton of food from the deli and the restaurant down the street."

"Did you get sauerkraut?"

"Of course," he laughed, "But I did make one dish," he said gesticulating with his beer, "green bean casserole - as it is the one thing my sisters trust me not to mess up!" She laughed with him at the idea of mixing together canned soup, green beans and fried onions.

…..

After they had eaten and watched the Minnesota Vikings beat the Dallas Cowboys, they lay on the floor as the recorded game played on the television. "OK, so two neutral teams, who do you want to win, the Steelers or Lions?" Will asked, prodding her arm. "Gotta be the Lions!" She replied.

Several beers and a bottle of wine later, they had moved to the couch as the game was sent into overtime. "Coin toss!" shouted Will as Angela returned from the bathroom. "Who won?" She asked sitting down beside him. "It's unclear," Will replied as the scenes in front of them showed confusion as Jerome Bettis screamed at an official that the referee got the result of the coin toss wrong. "I think the Lions got it, but I'm not sure," he shook his head unable to process what was happening.

….

Angela's cell phone began to ring and she got up to retrieve it from her purse. "My Dad," she said to Will. He nodded and mouthed " _OK_ " to her, as he picked up their glasses and moved to the kitchen. As he watched her talk to her Dad, he opened a new bottle of wine and poured some of the ruby liquid into each glass. Setting her drink on the coffee table, he sat down on the couch, taking a mouthful of his wine. Angela seemed to be winding down the conversation, "Me too, give my love to Diane, bye." She ended the call, placed the phone on the table and took a seat next to Will, "He says hello," she smiled at him.

"Who's Diane? Does he have a girlfriend?" he enquired.

Angela laughed, "God, no! She's his best friend; they've known each other forever. She's like my substitute aunt and, after my Mom died, the greatest female influence in my life."

"What does she do?"

"She's a lawyer, a top litigator," she said proudly.

"So," he said, stroking her thigh with his hand, "with all these top attorneys around you, how come you went into medicine?"

"Rebellion," she joked, laughing with him. "I wanted to do something positive, guess that's why most medics go into the profession, to do some good. My paternal grandmother was a nurse and I suppose that had some influence."

Will put his wine on the table and turned to look at her, placing his right hand on the side of her face and tilting it upwards, "Well, I think being a doctor suits you, can't imagine you arguing in court, not least defending a guilty client." When their lips met she could taste the wine on him. "And," Will continued, moving away so he could read her face, "it's damn sexy! I hope if I'm ever sick you'll come to my bedside, maybe naked under a white coat," he chuckled raising his eyebrows suggestively before leaning in to kiss her again. As he moved to kiss her neck, she replied, "I was commando under my scrubs earlier!"  
"God!" He groaned, picking her up bridal style and carrying her into the bedroom as she laughed loudly.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. For those who asked, I have written more about Will and Alicia and it will come in time, need to build up to it as I have a long term plan for the story.

This is just a short chapter as I realised the date and wanted to post something!

 _Through The Years_ (Kenny Rogers)

Chicago, October 15th 2015

The elevator opened on the 28th floor and Angela took a deep breath before walking into the reception of Lockhart, Agos & Lee.

She took in the scene in front of her, very little had changed since the days of Stern, Lockhart & Gardner. Those damn glass walls, she thought, smiling at what she saw as an absurd design choice. Diane was the only survivor; Jonas and Will were gone and it seemed surreal to be back here without either of them. Apart from a few occasions she hadn't been here since Alicia started and even those visits were relatively recent: the last time had been the Christmas party nearly two years ago.

Approaching the front desk, she said, "Hello, I've come to see Diane Lockhart."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Not officially, it's personal, not legal. My name is Angela Austen, she knows I'm coming."

"Hello, can I help?" the question came from behind her and she turned round to look at the man who spoke.

Smiling, she replied, "I'm just waiting for Diane."

The receptionist interrupted, "Excuse me, Miss Austen, Miss Lockhart said to go straight down."

"Thank you."

"I'll walk you down. I'm Cary Agos," he said offering his hand.

She smiled at the younger man as she shook it, "I'm Angela, an old friend of Diane's."

Cary nodded and held out his arm to guide her past reception and down the corridor towards the partners' offices. "You know Alicia?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied, "I think she's still figuring me out though!" she chuckled. "I knew Will," she offered as a means of clarification, aware that he probably knew more about her already.

Diane saw them approach and got up from her desk to open her office door, "Thanks Cary."

"Nice to meet you," Angela said, smiling as she stepped into Diane's office. "Yeah," he replied in a soft voice, a cross between intrigue and politeness, as he turned to walk back to his office.

Diane embraced Angela then went to pour them both a drink. As Angela moved towards one of the chairs in front of Diane's desk she paused to look through the void to the office opposite. Taking in a quick breath she put her hand to her mouth, realizing that her eyes were starting to water. "I know," Diane said gently, handing her a glass of bourbon, "to me it will always be Will's office." Angela turned and nodded at her friend, managing a weak smile.

Taking a seat, she said, "You know, it's seventeen years ago today that I first met him." Smiling at Diane, she added, "We always celebrated the date, kinda like an anniversary." She sighed and sniffed, trying to stop the tears that were threatening to roll down her face. Looking down, she fumbled in her purse for a tissue to dab her eyes.

"You knew him longer than I did," Diane said quietly, "for that I will be eternally envious. For all the challenges partnership threw at us, he was my best friend and, at heart, a good man. I keep expecting to look over to see him, sitting at his desk, throwing a baseball in the air or simply smiling through the glass at me."

Angela smiled and nodded slowly contemplating the loss her friend felt. "Well, if you're jealous of me, my green-eyed monster is firmly fixed on Alicia Florrick. She was always there in the background, even before she became a junior associate."

Diane nodded, understanding the pull that Alicia had on her former partner and the fact that the First Lady of Illinois had stopped him from ever moving on.


	8. Chapter 8

_She's Always a Woman_ (Billy Joel)

Chicago, September 2009

Will let himself into Angela's apartment, shouted a greeting then realized the silence and lack of shoes, purse and keys meant she was still at work. Putting down his things and taking off his jacket, he rolled up his sleeves as he walked to her refrigerator knowing he would find a beer. Twisting off the cap he took a long drink and sighed. Will was confused, conflicted, amused and excited by his encounter in the morning.

He wanted to talk about how he felt.

He needed advice.

He needed Angela.

He picked up his briefcase and moved towards the couch. Opening it to take out the files he should read for court in the morning, he sighed and retracted his hand.

He couldn't work. He'd spent the afternoon once he returned from depositions sitting at his desk pretending to work. He couldn't get Alicia Florrick out of his head.

"Arrghh!" He sighed and took another swig of his beer, swinging his legs up onto the couch. Putting his drink on the coffee table, he lay down and closed his eyes. The image in his head was of Alicia: young, ambitious and happy – his friend from Law School. He still loved the way she would look at him and smile – a special smile that he felt was reserved for him and made his whole body light up. He sighed, thinking that he had put his feeling for Alicia in a box and stored them away. Seeing her again today brought them back to the surface. Especially when she flashed him the same smile he had known all those years ago at Georgetown. Without realizing it he feel asleep.

Angela returned home shortly before seven and as she shut the door behind her, the noise woke Will. "Hey," he said, his voice emanating out of the dark living room served to make her jump. "Jesus!" she exclaimed, letting out a sharp breath and holding her hand to her chest, "Will! You gave me a fright."

He laughed and sat up, leaning over the back of the couch to face her. "Good day?" he enquired.

"Well, nobody died, so I guess, yes," she smiled as she crossed the room, leaning down to kiss him on the top of his head as she reached the couch.

"What are you doing here? Thought you were _busy-busy_ ," she asked.

"Arrghhhh," he sighed again, "yes, too much work, so little time and I can't get anything done." Angela retreated to the kitchen, hanging her jacket on the back of a chair before heading to the refrigerator.

"Pourquoi?" she said as she brought him a fresh beer. He frowned at her use of French; it wasn't a language he was conversant in and she frequently teased him with it. They clinked bottles as she sat down beside him, resting her right hand on his thigh.

He didn't know what to say, how to broach the subject, so he went for the basic facts. "I was downtown for depos this morning and ran into Alicia Florrick," he said turning to her, his expression a mixture of apprehension and longing. A longing that had been bubbling under the surface of Will Gardner for over fifteen years.

Angela let out a deep, audible breath, blinked slowly, then looked at Will, equally dumbfounded, "What?" She was almost unable to form the word.

His bemused expression said it all, "I know. The Alicia Cavanaugh that was. Love of my frickin' life," he said quietly, leaning back against the couch.

"Where did you meet? Did you speak to her?" She asked, quickly taking a sip of her beer.

"In the elevator of all places!" he scoffed, "I put my hand in to stop the doors and there she was. Yeah, we talked, briefly. She'd just got a new job."

"She's going back to work?"

"Apparently," he nodded.

"Anywhere you know?"

"Wells & Bowen, it's a good firm," he confirmed.

"Mm-huh," Angela murmured, putting her arm around his shoulders.

Will rested his head on her chest and groaned. "All the times I've seen her on the TV, didn't prepare me for seeing her in the flesh again. I, I, don't know what to think, Ange," he paused, "My mind is spinning. I couldn't get any work done this afternoon for thinking about her." He added, a weary smile crossing his face.

"She might have been just as surprised. She was probably hoping to avoid being recognized and then she bumps into the Georgetown Playboy!"

"Hey," he laughed, "what can I say, I was popular." She smiled at him and chuckled.

He continued, "The moment I saw her, I was taken back to Georgetown, to the first time I saw her at the pool party. Yes, the years have aged us, but she is still beautiful and has the most joyous smile that fills me with warmth." He smiled and closed his eyes, thinking back to the day almost twenty years ago when he first met her during orientation.

"Don't think I really impressed her the first time we met, but I think being a managing partner helped me today," he chuckled, taking another sip of beer.

"Yes, but that first impression back in the day was overcome and you became friends, so I'm sure however goofy you appeared today, she'll forgive. You're still cute and her hubby is in the clink," she joked and smiled at him.

"Well, she noticed I was wearing sneakers, which reduced the tension a bit. Oh," he paused, "I wonder if she thought I meant my baby? She didn't ask."

"Did you clean your shoes?"

"Yeah, don't worry, I haven't dragged baby vomit in here," he laughed.

She chuckled. "I'm sure she'll ask what you've been doing for the past fifteen years later."

"So, do you have any plans this evening or are you happy to get some dinner and let me wallow?" He asked.

"Actually, I have a date," she told him, "with Frank."

"Det. Seabrook, huh," he paused taking a sip of beer, "what is it third date?" he winked at her.

"Yeah, meeting him for drinks at nine. Want me to cancel? I can blow him off?"

Will chuckled, raising an eyebrow at her, "Cancelling and blowing him off are two very different things Ange."

"Don't be filthy!" she joked and playfully slapped him on the arm.

"You went there too!" he retaliated.

She laughed, "Touché!"

"No, you should go," he said quietly, stroking her hair, "it can wait."

"Really?" she questioned, "sure doesn't look like it."

"Yeah," he smiled, "I have work to do, but can I stay here until you get back?"

She nodded. "I need a shower," she pulled at her jumper as she rose and walked towards her bedroom, taking her beer with her.

"OK, then shout when you're finished," he yelled after her, "I'll help you pick out something pretty," he laughed. She giggled and closed the door behind her.

….

Less than an hour after she left for her date, Angela was back, clutching a pizza and a six-pack of beer. "What happened?" Will asked, eyeing the pizza and beer, he figured nothing good

"We'll do it another day."

"You were stood up?"

"No, he didn't come, something got in the way," she paused, "work," she added in a sad tone, shrugging as she hung her jacket on the coat stand. "I'm gonna get changed. Have some pizza, I figured you wouldn't have eaten," she said as she disappeared down the hall to her bedroom.

Will got up from the couch and went to find some plates in the kitchen. As he placed them on the counter, something didn't feel quite right. Ange wasn't that bothered that her date was cancelled, it was unlike her – if she got dressed up for a fella, she expected him to turn up. He moved swiftly and picked up her purse from the floor by the door. Checking she wasn't on her way back, he took her phone from the front pocket and unlocked it – he smiled at the fact she still uses the same code after all these years – and tapped on messages. His finger hesitated over the first entry, the sender of which was Frank Seabrook - he shouldn't be doing this. He took a breath and clicked on the message, ' _Yeah, that would be good_.' He sighed and scrolled to the top of the conversation. The first message was from Angela: ' _Hi, really sorry to do this, but I'm going to have to take a rain check on drinks, got caught up at work_.' Huh, so he was right, Angela did cancel the date. Frank: ' _Hey, don't worry about it, happens to all of us. Shame though, was looking forward to seeing you.'_ Angela: ' _How about Friday? I'm not in until late Saturday so can have fun Friday night…'_ Frank: ' _I can do Friday.'_ Angela: ' _Same place, 8pm?'_ Frank: ' _Yeah, that would be good.'_ Will replaced the phone and put her purse back in the entryway. He felt ashamed for reading her messages but his heart warmed that she came back, realising he needed her this evening.

"I decided I'd worn enough outfits for today so thought I'd get ready for bed," Angela announced as she came back into Will's line of sight. "For what it's worth Ange, you looked good earlier, shame Frank missed out," he glanced at her, the corner of his mouth turning up. She smiled at him, shaking her head with a chuckle.

She pulled two beers from the pack and put the remainder in the refrigerator. Will sat at the counter and pulled a slice of pizza onto his plate. "Talk to me," she instructed, sliding a beer across the counter.

…..

Will was startled as Paul McCartney singing the opening to _Hey Jude_ began emanating from Angela's purse. Angela sighed, a little frustrated, as she recognized the caller and got up to silence her cell. McCartney had got as far as remembering to let her into your heart when Angela hit the reject button.

Will looked at her, tilting his head inquisitively, "Nice ringtone!"

"It's Frank," she replied.

"Why _Hey Jude_? Doesn't really seem like a Frankie kind of song."

"Saint Jude is the patron saint of the Chicago PD," she noted, tilting her head and moving her hands in explanation. Will nodded, "OK," then added, "you should have answered it."

"Later," she said and took a drink of her beer.

Angela's cell phone vibrated and a text alert appeared onscreen. Will picked it up and handed it to her, "Frank," he stated. Angela smiled as she read the message and tapped out a reply. Within seconds, the familiar buzz signalled another message. She touched the screen to read it and sighed, pursing her lips as she contemplated a response. Eventually she replied and set the phone down.

She noticed Will's eyes were on the device as got up to go to the bathroom, "Down boy," she cautioned him. He smiled up at her and raised his eyebrows, "Just wondering if I have real competition?"

"Nah, you'll always be my number one," she winked at him.

"Good. I'm narcissistic enough to think women should give up sex altogether after me."

Angela laughed, "Well, I'm not about to do that!"

Will chuckled. His life was turning into a soap opera. Here he was talking about his feelings for a woman he hadn't seen for over a decade with his best friend – who happened to be his ex-girlfriend and occasional lover, while she sexted a guy she was dating, who was somebody he knew through work. Oh, and the woman he was enamored with was the wife of the former State's Attorney.

When Angela returned Will asked, "You like him, don't you?"

"Yeah," she smiled, "he's cute."

"No, I mean _really_ like him Ange," he said turning to face her. "I haven't seen you this interested in a guy for a long time," he paused to let the words sink in, "which is why I'm surprised that you aren't more upset that you came home early."

"I told you, he had to work," she replied a little too defensively, almost revealing the fact she cancelled on Frank. "You and I have both cancelled dates because a case got in the way, same with Frank. Yes, I'm disappointed, but can't be helped."

Will nodded and looked down at the beer in his hand. "OK," he said after a few moments, "but he's different. I get the feeling that he's more than a one-night stand or you usual two-week romances."

"God!" she exclaimed, laughing, "You know me so well, Mr Gardner!" Will laughed and picked up the bowl of potato chips.

"Yes," Angela continued, "I do want more than that with him, but I'm not sure how it will work out. I'm leaving in a couple of weeks and, well, it's not great timing."

"Bad timing hon, it's how we roll!" They laughed and Angela laid down on the couch, resting her head on Will's lap. "Yeah," she added sadly. "This really is the first time I've felt more than just a basic physical attraction to somebody for a long time. I find him intriguing, funny, and there's a soft side to the rugged exterior I want to get to know.

"Well, from what K says, I think the feeling is mutual."

"Hmmm," Angela smiled, "good to know," she said as she closed her eyes.

…...

"I told her to call me sometime. I didn't get her number," Will said.

Did you check there wasn't a Post-it on your ass?"

He laughed heartily, "She isn't you!"

"You know where she works, Wells Fargo, or whatever, call her there, wish her luck for her first day."

He sighed, "I dunno, she might not appreciate me butting into her life after fifteen years. She's got a lot going on and that ass of a husband can make her life very difficult. She won't want me interfering."

"Maybe she could use a little interference," Angela winked at him, "remember Georgetown…" as she chuckled to herself.

"As much as I would love to, the ball is in her court."

"OK, but I think you're wasting an opportunity. Timing sweetheart. Remember clock is ticking."

He got up to go to the bathroom, as he crossed the room, he laughed, " _Wells Fargo!"_ Stopping to turn around he added, "Janie, you crack me up, don't ever leave." She smiled at his old nickname for her, a moniker that he only ever used when they were alone and was a remnant from their early days together.

…..

Later that evening they were sitting quietly drinking bourbon on the sofa, with Angela resting her head against Will's shoulder.

Will broke the silence: "Thanks Ange," he said, taking her hand and linking his fingers with hers, "thanks for coming back."

"No worries," she replied and lifted their entwined hands to kiss the top of his, unaware that he knew full well that she had broken her date to stay with him.

"I'm going to bed," she leant forward to place her empty class on the table, before rubbing her hand gently on his leg.

He gave her a tired smile and lifted his glass in a mock toast, "I won't be long."

The comfortable relationship they had meant that when they stayed at each other's apartments they were happy to still share the same bed. For both of them, such a simple, platonic gesture gave the illusion of not being alone and, particularly for Angela, helped her sleep more contentedly. Also, given the fact that Angela's spare room housed a multitude of boxes ready for her impending move, there really wasn't anywhere else for Will to sleep.

As Angela moved towards the bedroom, Will sighed and rested his head on the back of the couch, closing his eyes and running his free hand through his hair. He didn't know what to make of today, seeing her was a surprise - a good surprise, he thought to himself. But it had thrown him; all those feelings for Alicia he had buried were now resurfacing. Will refilled his glass from the bottle in front of him and let his mind wander to the stunning brunette. A smile crossed his face as he sipped the amber liquid, he was pleased he ran into Mrs Alicia Florrick.

…..

Opening the bedroom door, he found Angela sitting up rubbing lotion on her hands, "What do I have in the way of clothes here?" he asked.

"Some dress shirts, not sure about pants, look in the closet," she replied.

"I'm not gonna find a fawn and fall into Narnia am I?" he laughed opening one of the doors. "Ah, Armani!" he said, pulling out a beautiful navy wool suit to show her, "I can go straight to court in the morning," a little relieved. He hung the suit back in the closet and sat on the edge of the bed.

"The last time I saw her was before I ever met you," he said looking at her reflection in the mirror.

"I know," she sighed, watching his eyes in the glass.

"Our whole friendship has been conducted in the time since Alicia Cavanaugh and I last spoke. Just seems surreal. So long ago." He sighed, contemplating the passing of the years and the time he had missed out on with Alicia.

"Very nearly eleven years since we met," she smiled and saw him return her gaze, beaming at her in the mirror. He quickly turned around to face her, "15th October," he said positively, seeing the recognition on her face. "Who knew that the beautiful stranger I stole a drink from would become my best friend and would, through fate or luck, forever connect me to Diane Lockhart," he said sincerely, taking her hand and kissing it, just as she had done to his earlier. "I still can't believe that my Diane was your Dad's Diane," he chuckled.

"I know," she replied, "but maybe you both would have approached the merger differently if you had known. Things happen for a reason."

"Yeah, like meeting people in elevators!" he joked. Angela laughed.

"Do you think she's given me a second thought since this morning?" He asked as he took off his pants and placed them on a leather chair in the corner.

"You mean in the, _damn, he's mighty fine, gotta get me some of that_ sense," she smirked. He laughed and threw a sock at her.

Angela giggled, "Seriously though, you probably did cross her mind once or twice," she said nodding gently. "Especially since you asked her to get in touch," she paused, "she could be having this exact same conversation with one of her friends, trying to decide whether to call the Hotshot Lawyer." She used her nickname for him; it was how Diane had introduced him to her all those years ago – unaware they already knew each other. He smirked at her, "You think?"

"Yeah. If I met my old college crush and he said to call him, I would, especially if I was single. Might wait a day or two so I didn't appear needy, but yeah, I would."

Throwing his shirt across the room and into Angela's laundry basket, like a pro player, he joked, "You can wash that." She laughed as he climbed into bed beside her. "OK, so you think she will call me. Am I over-thinking this?"

"Yes and yes." She said in an insistent tone.

"Huh," he sighed, "I'll wait. I've waited fifteen years, guess I can wait a few days."

"Oh, and, needy is not really your thing," he scoffed, "you're more likely to forget you have a boyfriend than to appear insecure and overpower them with texts and flowers!"

"Oi!" she playfully slapped his arm as they both collapsed into laughter. "I didn't ignore you when we were dating," she countered.

"I know. You were very attentive," he reassured her.

"I had a lot to live up to," she turned to him and chuckled.

"Yes, I am pretty memorable!"

"Oh and so humble," she mocked.

"Seriously, Ange, make it up to Frank. He's a good guy."

"I will."

"Night," he said kissing her on the cheek.

"Night sweetie."

She turned out the light and, as they lay in the darkness, Will asked, "Should I call her?"

"Yes," she replied, "carpe diem Will."

 **A/N: the next chapter will bring Alicia and Angela together again – some tough questions will be asked. Reviews always welcome!**


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews; I am glad you are enjoying it!

 _Hey There Delilah_ (Plain White Tees)

Chicago, July 2015 

**A/N: With Diane's guidance and support Alicia and Angela are slowly getting to know each other. In this chapter the three women meet for a drink. Sorry it is short – more to come very soon** **.**

Alicia took a sip of her wine and turned to Angela, "OK, I now have a little understanding of your friendship with Will, still not sure I approve," she smirked, "but there are so many other things I want to know." She paused, "You were with him for a long time, through some important events and, well, to me at least you, are the only person who really seemed to _know_ him."

Angela sighed, "Yes, I, I see that," struggling to find the right words. "Will was a complex character and didn't always allow people into his inner sanctum. He struggled with closeness, with his emotions and often felt like he was acting or doing what was expected of him, particularly in personal relationships. As I've said, the person people saw in the courtroom was not the complete Will Gardner."

Alicia looked pained, she closed her eyes and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. Her mind was drawn to Will. Will in bed with her. Will naked. Will running his warm hands over her soft skin, tracing the contours of her body and thrilling her with his touch. She bit her lip and felt a tear run down her face. Angela reached out to put her hand on Alicia's arm, "Don't think Will wasn't committed to you. He was," she said trying to reassure her. Alicia opened her eyes and looked at the redhead. Angela continued, "He may not have been the most emotionally honest person, but one thing he was certain of was his love for you."

Alicia furrowed her brow, taking a moment to consider what Angela had just said. "You believe he still loved me, even after what I did, all the hurt I caused him?"

Before Angela could respond, Diane added, "He _did_ love you," nodding in reassurance.

"Yes, he did. And yes, he was hurt," she paused, "deeply hurt and that caused him to do some stupid things, but it also gave him a renewed vigor to prove himself in the courtroom and ensure Lockhart Gardner succeeded. His feelings for you were real. You were one of the few people he was honest with, even if he wasn't always honest with himself. When you and Cary left the firm he didn't initially accept what Diane was telling him – he couldn't believe that you of all people would go behind his back and plot to leave. That was what hurt him the most, what caused him pain. His anger really betrayed his love. He didn't want to let you go."

Alicia turned away from Angela, took a deep breath before wiping the tears from her eyes.

Diane took a drink of her scotch before saying, "He was fiercely protective of the firm and his friends and, at times, a little too passionate, which caused him and others grief," she said, adding, "but let's not go into that," quietly and raising her hands in a mock surrender.

Angela added "If you really want to know about Will around the time you left Lockhart Gardner, that is best left for another time," she paused before continuing quietly, "it really isn't something that puts anybody in a good light."

Alicia took a breath, "I understand. I don't think I'm necessarily ready to hear it anyway. I regret so much. We all did and said things in haste: hateful, angry words that we didn't mean."

"Expect Kurt and I. We were the good guys, like Woody and Buzz Lightyear," Angela quipped, laughing to herself. The statement made Alicia smile and she sniffed, trying to stop her nose from running alongside the tears. Diane handed her a Kleenex, recognising the pain Alicia felt.

Angela stood up, "Want another drink?" The two women chorused, "Yes, please," and Angela headed to the bar. She ordered a scotch, a red wine, and bourbon for herself and returned to the table.

…...

Alicia turned to Angela and said, "He told me once that he needed friends, like a buddy he could talk to and get drunk with, so forgive me, but why did he need that if he had you? Was it just a ruse so that I was kept in the dark about your relationship?"

Angela chuckled, "Yeah, he told me. That was when I was living in Madison and we couldn't randomly hook up or spill our hearts over a drink. It was a hard time for both of us, we were both lonely and work often got in the way when we tried to get away from it." Diane nodded knowingly. "I didn't have anyone either, I went to work, went back to my apartment and pretty much that was it." She paused to take a drink of her bourbon, before adding, "Don't get me wrong, I wanted to be there, it was a great opportunity and helped me get the position here, but I missed home, I missed my friends," she leaned across the table and grabbed Diane's hand, squeezing her fingers in hers, "and most of all I missed Will."

She continued, "He did need friends. New friends. Good friends. Yes, he had _friends_ and they were fine for his pickup game or a quick beer, but they weren't good enough for a real, meaningful relationship. I liked Matthew Wade, but that friendship didn't survive the Grand Jury and Henry turned out to be, oh God, I don't know what," she paused, "a fool, a blinkered idiot," she added shaking her head. "So, yes, when he said that he was telling the truth. We told each other practically everything, but sometimes I thought he just needed a guy to talk to."

Diane nodded in agreement, "I sometimes wonder about Kurt, he has a lot of female friends, much younger female friends," she rolled her eyes as she said the last part, "but he does have hunting buddies and guys he talks to, but I'm never sure who he would spill his heart to, if it wasn't for me."

"OK," Alicia said, bobbing her head, turning to Angela, she asked, "So do you have a female friend to talk to?"

Smiling across the table, Angela said simply, "I have Diane." Diane smiled broadly and nodded in confirmation.

...…

Angela's phone buzzed, she glanced at the screen, "I should take this, you never know what's going to be happening at the other end," she smiled. She got up and left the table, answering her phone, "Hi Elsbeth."

When Angela returned, Alicia asked, "Sorry if I sound nosey, but who was that? I thought you said Elsbeth and I can only think of one Elsbeth." Alicia's mind had gone to the quirky lawyer who had become somebody she could rely on and wondered if it was the same person. Her suspicion was soon confirmed.

"Ah, that's OK," Angela began. "It _was_ Elsbeth. Elsbeth Tascioni, you know her, right?"

"Yeah," she shook her head and laughed, "how do _you_ know her?"

"Through Will. She came round to his apartment after the Grand Jury hearing, I was there and he introduced us. Well, what he actually did was give us coffee, sit us down then walk away – _laughing_ to himself!" Angela smiled as she recalled the meeting. "He thought the two of us would either hit it off or become sworn enemies. Two redheads could be a dangerous thing, although I must say, I am the only natural one – Elsbeth is really a blonde in Jessica Rabbit's clothing," the comment made the three women laugh.

 **A/N: The next chapter will involve more Alicia/Angela and some flashbacks with Will and his women…**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Thanks for the lovely reviews. I am happy you are still enjoying it. Hopefully more updates will come soon; I have a long term plan for the story and lots of chapters in the works.**

 _Who Loves You_ (Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons)

Chicago, September 2015 

Alicia, Diane and Angela are talking together after work. The conversation, as always, focuses on Will.

Angela began, "He had a lot of women in his life that he loved, his sisters, niece – who is crazy adorable, have you ever met her?" Alicia shook her head, Diane nodded, "I have."

Angela continued, "I think that growing up with so many females helped him with women, he was confident and understood them. He knew how to make a woman happy." With that comment, Alicia giggled to herself, thinking of how he made her happy, both at work and in the bedroom.

She nodded, starting to comprehend their relationship, before saying, "He did have a lot of women. Will and the women." She almost whispered the last statement.

"He was popular and very handsome," Diane chimed in, before quickly looking at her watch. "Sorry ladies, but I have to meet Kurt for dinner," she said, quickly finishing her drink.

"Have a lovely evening Diane," Alicia replied.

"Give him my love," Angela added, kissing Diane on the cheek as she lent forward to replace her glass on the bar.

…..

"Angela, what did you really think of Tammy?"

Angela laughed, rolling her eyes and leaning back in her chair. "That a loaded question Mrs Florrick?" she quipped.

Alicia shook her head and slowly curled her tongue up to her top lip, "Come on Doc, tell tales, spill, was he ever really serious about her?"

Angela took a drink of her bourbon, then began, "Tammy chased Will. I think she liked the idea of him more than actually having him," she paused, looking directly at Alicia. "I was never sure whether it was a relationship she wanted out of some kind of payback for Helena, maybe lead him on until he was committed then break his heart, leave him, see how he felt. She was difficult to judge, I always felt I never got the full story from her. She didn't like me and she made that clear, so perhaps that is why she was reticent around me."

Alicia pondered Angela's opening statements, "Yeah," she said slowly, "I got a similar feeling. She wanted him, but she wanted to be _wanted_ , which is not something Will was very keen to do."

"Exactly. She said she would leave him if he fell in love with her. He told her that he wouldn't fall in love with her. Poor girl didn't believe him, thought he was joking. He had fun with her, but she wasn't Will Gardner's leading lady," Angela dipped her head at Alicia, "that was you."

"And you," Alicia responded, "you meant as much, if not more to him over the years."

"Well, maybe I can be the _leading lady_ and you can be the _love interest_!" Both women chuckled and sipped their drinks, individually remembering Will in their arms.

"Will Gardner, matinee idol!" Alicia mocked.

"Oh yes," Angela giggled, "in that case, Diane deserves an Emmy for best supporting actress!"

Alicia chuckled and a broad smile crossed her face, "Definitely deserves an award for putting up with all his crap!"

Angela nodded, before continuing, "Getting back to Tamara, he found her clingy. She used to turn up at the office, bring him lunch then get all pissed that he had work. It was like she was marking her territory."

"Yes, I remember a very awkward moment when she tried to persuade me to eat lunch with her in Will's office. Said she was turning into her mother."

"Oh God, her poor Dad!" Angela mocked.

Alicia laughed, "I told her that I hoped I didn't turn into my mother!"

"Ha!"

…...

"I first met Tammy when Will brought her to a fundraising gala. I think she suspected that I was the girl that caused Will to break up with her sister, the look on Will's face certainly confirmed it to me. She was pretty and as a sports journalist had something in common with Will, so they were a good fit."

"Yeah, I guess, but it was never going to be a permanent relationship. He didn't like to go solo at big events, so resorted to his little black book; Tammy just stuck around longer than most. Diane was pleased Will took somebody his own age, as he usually dated younger women."

"When did you meet her?"

"It was after that. Feb '11 I think. I'd come to Chicago for a job interview and to visit Will and Diane – my Dad was in Cambridge at the time – so I was staying with Will. Tammy came by…" Angela's voice tailed off and she took another sip of her drink before explaining their meeting.

 **FLASHBACK: Chicago, February 2011**

 _Will opened the door to his apartment, put his briefcase by the door and shouted out a cheerful, but tired, 'Hey' to Angela. She was sitting on the couch playing with her iPad and looked up and smiled at him. "Evening sweetheart, want a beer?" He nodded slowly, closed his eyes and walked towards the couch. Angela got up and moved towards the refrigerator, briefly running her hand up his arm as they passed each other. Will took off his jacket, threw it over the back of the couch and began to roll his sleeves up to his elbows. Oh how she loved the casual Will, even if rolling his sleeves had more of a 'work to be done' attitude than a nod to 'the working day is over'. She liked how the thin fabric of his shirt caressed his toned biceps and remembered the strong arms that she hoped would take her in their embrace later._

" _I met Tammy today – she dropped by." She said as she handed him the cold beverage. "Ah, that explains it, I have eight missed calls and two 'Call Me' texts from her." I was too busy to answer, then wasn't in the mood to speak to her at the office, so figured when I got home I'd call her, maybe."_

 _He took a long pull on the beer before setting it down on the coffee table and took out his cell. Angela went back to her iPad and Will phoned Tammy._

 _She heard snippets of opening greetings before he shouted, incredulous, to Angela: "You were naked?" as he jumped to his feet and spun round to face her, his right hand in the air._

 _She gave him a knowing smile and winked, "Yeah, I thought she'd bring that up" as she walked over to him and rubbed her hand in circles down his back. He ran his free hand through his hair._

 _Tammy was giving him a hard time on the phone, Angela could hear her raised voice._

" _Why were you naked?" he whispered quickly at her, gently pulling at the knot of his tie to release it._

" _I'd just got out of the shower and was literally walking past the door when she knocked. I thought it was you, so I opened it," she smiled at him and gave a half shrug as she moved her hand down and gently, but playfully smacked his bottom. She walked off towards the bedroom knowing that Will was watching her leave._

" _No, no, no, Tam, listen to me," Will continued to protest to Tammy, but she wasn't in a listening mood._

 _He ended the call, let his left hand and cell fall to his side as he sighed heavily, resting his head on the top of the couch. Smiling to himself, he couldn't blame Tammy for being mad, after all she had found a naked woman in her boyfriend's home, but then, Angela knew exactly how to press his buttons and he felt in the mood to be pressed. Getting up, he grabbed the remains of his beer and walked towards his bedroom._

… _..._

"Now I know why she didn't like you. She was jealous!"

"Oh yes, she thought I was some kind of wicked witch! She didn't know much about our history, just that we were old friends. Had she known everything I doubt she would have let him visit me in Madison while they were dating."

Alicia shook her head, "Probably not. Excuse me while I go to the bathroom. Won't be long."

"OK."

While she waited for Alicia to return, Angela thought about Will's relationship with Tammy and recalled her trying to get Will to commit.

 **FLASHBACK:** **Chicago, April 2011**

 _The following phone call between Will and Angela took place following Jonas Stern's death:_

" _Tammy came to see me, she's been offered a job in London, for the Olympics."_

" _Good," she paused, "for her.'_

" _She didn't know whether to go and wanted to sound me out about our relationship, where we are going, if we're going anywhere. I didn't know what to say, how to respond."_

" _Uh-huh, you hoping she'll make the decision for you?"_

" _She talked to Alicia today," he let the idea hang in the air._

" _Dangerous!"_

" _Er, yeah, Leesh said it was fine, Tammy was fine, but did make me feel weird. I hate feeling weird. He took a sharp intake of breath, "After Jonas' death I felt alone. I don't have anybody to call when I win a case, I go home to an empty apartment. I asked her to stay. Told her not to go to London. Not sure where we go from here."_

" _Hey, sweetheart you can call me."_

 _He stopped her, "I know and I do, but there is only so much you can take and often when I get outta court you're just starting a shift." He sighed, "There's no time, no," he paused, "space in our lives, for, oh, I don't know…' He lost his train of thought and wondered if he was going too far down a different route, so quickly changed the subject, "Anyway, how is work? When are you back?"_

 _Angela ignored his questions, "Seriously Will, I know what you mean. I walk back to my apartment after a shift and there's nobody to unload on, nobody to just hold me when I'm upset or even cook my bloody dinner!"_

 _He chuckled at that last part, before she continues. "Don't get me wrong, I love the hospital and the people are kind, but I've nothing here. I miss Chicago. I miss you," she began to sound tearful._

" _When are you back in Chicago, for good, not just a visit? I miss you too. And its not just me being maudlin because Stern died and confused over Tammy, I want my friend back," he said, trying to comfort her, but also reassure himself._

" _End of May probably, I officially finish here in June but have some vacation time. I need to check my sub-let, can't remember when they leave, so might have to find somewhere to stay as my Dad's place is also rented."_

" _You can always stay with me in the meantime."_

 _Yeah, 'cos the last time I did that, it wasn't awkward for Little Miss Tammy."_

" _Maybe this time you can keep your clothes on."_

" _Oh, where's the fun in that!"_

 _He snickered and sighed, "True, but don't tease me, especially now I've kinda committed to Tam."_

" _I don't think you have. Yes, I believe you have feelings for her, but you told her to stay as you were feeling down, I know you, you don't really want her, you just don't like being alone. And, in terms of love, you have that unrequited thing with Alicia."_

 _He interrupted her, a little irritated, "Hey!"_

" _Hey what? You can't deny it. It's something that has been lurking in the background ever since Georgetown and now you are thrown together in the office, the heat of the courtroom and late night trials…"_

" _She's married, I'm her boss, nothing can happen. She made it clear."_

" _Sure, nothing can happen. From what I can gather she hasn't made it clear, she just ignored it. You kissed, it had to mean something."_

" _That was a long time ago. If you were there I'd have kissed you."_

" _You'd done more than just kiss me!" They both laughed._

" _Yes. But, what I'm saying is, she chose Peter."_

" _No, you didn't fight for her."_

" _Ange, gotta go, that's my call waiting."_

" _You're stalling, Gardner," she replied._

" _Night Ange," he sighed, "you see right through me, come home soon."_

" _Night Will, love you."_

…..

Alicia's cell phone rang with the world's most obvious ringtone, 'Mom! Pick up the phone!' She smiled and answered, "Hello dearest daughter, I'll be home in twenty minutes," she paused as Grace spoke, then replied, "OK, see you soon, bye." "Sorry, Angela, I'd forgotten the time, better go," she said as she got out her wallet to leave some cash for her drink.

"No, I'll get these," Angela said, raising her palm to gesticulate a refusal of Alicia's twenty bucks.

"Thanks," she said, "it's been good to talk to you, we should go to dinner next time."

"Yes, I'd like that," Angela replied, smiling at Alicia as she stood to fasten her jacket. "I'm pleased we're becoming friends."

"Me too." With that, Alicia left the bar leaving the redhead alone.

Angela tapped the screen of her cell and smiled as a picture of herself and Will appeared. She was in his arms and they were dancing, laughing, happy. It was an old picture; it was taken by Diane on the day Will won his first court case as a partner at Stern, Lockhart & Gardner. She ran her thumb across the image of Will and sighed gently to herself. He had left a hole in her heart that she didn't think could ever be filled. Unlike Alicia and Diane she didn't have a husband and no real prospect of a boyfriend, perhaps she had invested too much in Will?

In an effort to stop tears forming in her eyes, she took a sip of her drink and scanned the bar. Through the crowd she could see a familiar face…

 **A/N: Please review – who do you think it is? Who do you want it to be?**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Sorry for not updating – work became very busy then it was the holidays. It is only a short chapter, but more to come soon. This is just a little filler for now.**

 _Whatever It Is_ (Zac Brown Band)

Chicago, December 2009 

The cold weather and occasional snowfalls meant it was coming to the end of the year, the end of Alicia's first few months at Stern Lockhart Gardner. It was that crazy time between Thanksgiving and Christmas when the world seemed to go mad. Will was not a big fan of the holidays. He enjoyed Thanksgiving – that was his idea of a holiday: he loved to relax in front of the football. Christmas was not his friend. He felt obligated to visit his sisters even though he would much rather stay home, drink beer and maybe even do a little work. He hated the fact that Angela always worked the holidays, but understood her reason – she was one of the few staff without family, so didn't need the vacation time. He thought of when they'd spent time around the holidays together and smiled to himself. Millennium Eve in Baltimore ranked up there with the pool party in law school. He chuckled then looked out of his office window, feeling a cold shiver. He hated the snow.

He picked up his Blackberry and spun it round in his fingers. Walking across his office, he let his mind drift back to his newest junior associate. He laid down on his couch and tapped the cell against his chin.

Will was conflicted. He wanted to tell Alicia how he really felt about her, but he was her boss and she was married. Married. It was a role Alicia took seriously and a role that meant there was a line between them that wouldn't, or shouldn't, be crossed.

He wondered if he should buy her a Christmas gift. It was not something he would normally do, but she was his friend. They had known each other since law school and he wanted to make her happy. Perhaps he also wanted to throw his hat into the ring with a romantic gesture. He was good at that. He was good with women. But he knew it was probably a step too far with Alicia, at least at the moment. She was married. She was with Peter. She was a good wife, even if Peter wasn't a good husband.

He closed his eyes and sighed. Why was everything so complicated now? Five months ago life was simple. He searched for a familiar number in his cell and hit 'call.'

…

"Sorry darling, didn't catch that, was opening a beer, what?" Angela said as she struggled to hold on to her phone, juggling the now open bottle and loose crown cap.

"K met with Frank last night," Will offered. When Angela didn't respond he added, "About the case, she was asking questions about Henry Baxter."

"Henry," she paused, "how is Henry?"

"Not sure, he could be in some trouble, we're trying to figure it out," Will sighed, tossing a baseball in the air and catching it in one hand.

"Oh," she paused, "do I want to know?"

"Probably not. Alicia thinks there is something behind a sentence he gave one of her clients in juvenile court, trying to drag Henry into a racism suit, it," he paused, lost in his words, "it's not that, Henry isn't racist – she's gone off on a mission and won't listen to reason, she won't listen to me," he added, a bit exasperated.

"What does Diane think?"

"She told her to look into it. She thinks it's _prima facie_ based on the evidence, which I can see, but it can't be that simple. Nothing ever is."

"Tread carefully, with both Alicia and Diane. If there is something to find, it will come out. Just be prepared not to like it."

"Yeah. Anyway lady, what's going on with you and Frank?" Will asked, hoping to change the subject and find out a little more about his friend's long-distance romance.

Angela sat down on her couch, put her head against the back of it and groaned, sucking air in across her teeth, "Dunno, haven't seen him for a while. I don't know how long it will last; it is so hard being in different places, especially with our schedules. I guess I'll see him when I'm visiting in the new year. To be honest Will, I can't be bothered at the moment."

He chuckled, "I get it Ange. Timing. Bad timing. Always our problem."

"Amen to that," she said, taking a sip of her beer.

"But don't give up too easily, he wakes you up, makes you smile. Not a lot of men have managed to do that, excluding my charming self," he chuckled and she could sense the twinkly look in his eyes.

Angela laughed and a broad grin covered her face, "So full of yourself, Hotshot!"

"All in the name," he replied, a sense of fun in his voice.

"Have to see what happens. I do miss him, but right now I could just do with some meaningless sex," she paused, "good sex."

"Ma'am, yes Ma'am," he mocked before adding, "that's something I miss." Angela laughed before taking a drink of her beer. "Me too."

Will smiled to himself and thought of the times he had got all hot and heavy with his friend and how he would very much like to do that to Alicia Florrick.

"What about the holidays? Is Prof. Dave making the trip across the pond?"

"Yeah," she replied, "his term finishes early so he's coming on the 22nd and staying a week then he's going to celebrate the New Year with friends in Chicago. Maybe with Diane and some of their circle? He doesn't go back to Cambridge until after I've been home in January."

"OK," he said thoughtfully, "so apart from hundreds of screaming patients you'll be alone on New Year?" He asked inquisitively with a small smile crossing his face. He realised that in the time they had been talking, it had got dark in his office as others had departed for home and security had turned off all major lights.

Angela chuckled, "Yeah, you know me so well!"

"Wanna friend?"

"Is that a come-on or an honest enquiry Mr. Gardner?"

"It's an honest... come-on."

They both laughed quietly, each lying on their respective couch, almost mirror images of each other.

"Hon, should I buy Alicia a gift?"

…..

Alicia sat at her dining table. She was surrounded by boxes of Christmas cards, envelopes, postage stamps and had a glass of her favourite red within arm's length. She was later than usual writing out her cards, having put off the inevitable chore until it was absolutely necessary.

Jackie had complained that she hadn't posted cards and that people would talk; Jackie was more interested in being respectable and seen to be keeping up with, or competing with the Jones' than in how Alicia really felt about signing a card with Peter's name.

There were people she had once shared coffee, laughs and her life in Highland Park with, but who were now strangers. Others that filled places on the list were acquaintances, people from the State's Attorney's Office who had worked with Peter, colleagues and clients from the office and Will. Will Gardner. The one that got away. The one that walked back into her life through an elevator door. She closed her eyes and a smile crossed her lips. She wondered what to write in a card to Will. What was appropriate given their working relationship? But their friendship surely superseded the partner-associate connection?

She gave a small sigh and picked up her pen in her left hand, tapping it from side to side against the table. Reaching out with her free hand, she took a mouthful of wine. Laying down her glass she picked up a card and began to write.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: A little flashback giving some further background to the Will-Angela-Diane relationship. Sorry no Alicia in this chapter, but more of her to come. This one is set before she returned to the law.**

 _Rockstar_ (Nickleback)

Chicago, September 2008 

Will, Diane and Angela are drinking coffee in Will's office.

At the sound of a beeper, Angela looked to her waist, "Use your phone?" Will nodded. Angela punched in a number, when the call was answered she gave her name then waited before saying, "OK, right, tell the co-coordinator I can be there in ten. How many casualties?" As she listened, she closed her eyes, muttering, 'Shit' under her breath, before sighing "OK" and hanging up. She placed her palms flat on Will's desk, leant forward, breathed deeply, then stood, wiped her hands on her trousers and turned to face them.

Will and Diane knew not to ask, instead waiting for her to speak. "There's been a crash on the L. Multiple casualties, I'm to be part of the first response team. Gotta go." She downed the remains of her coffee cup as she crossed the floor to walk up alongside Will, who was sitting in his leather chair. She placed the empty cup on the table in front of him, leant forward and took the red cup from his hand. She drank its contents and handed it back. Leaning to pick up her bag she nodded a goodbye to them and walked quickly out of the office.

"It amazes me how much coffee goes into that woman."

"And bourbon," added Diane, lowering her eyelids and nodding her head.

"Yeah, that too. She's in full commando mode, pity the people who get in her way," Will added, tilting his head to the side. They both laughed.

"How long have you two known each other?" Diane asked, already knowing the answer.

"Oh, seems like forever," Will chuckled, laying down the empty cup on the table, "ten years."

"Ten years," Diane repeated, raising an eyebrow, "some people have been married, divorced and remarried in that time," she noted.

"Yup. We've saved a fortune!" Will laughed.

"I remember when I tried to set you two up. Unbeknownst to me, you'd already met, fallen in love, parted ways then moved to Chicago together," she snorted a little as she laughed at the memory, raising her shoulders as she threw her head back with the laughter that pealed from her throat.

Will laughed, "Oh yes! I remember the evening well," he smiled at his partner. "It was just before we founded the firm, Ange was visiting Chicago for a job interview and was staying with me. I had a work thing,"

"Dinner at my house," Diane interrupted.

"Yes, dinner with you, Stern and some prospective clients," he nodded, "and she was having dinner with her Dad and some 'old friends'," he pointed at her. Grinning, he continued, "I picked out a dress for her and, as always, she looked gorgeous, as she wanted to make a good impression in case there were any hot men there! I complained that she didn't get dressed up to impress me," he lent forward to pick up a baseball from a bowl on the table and started squeezing it in his hand, "shouldn't have worried!" Diane joined him in laughing, "Yes, I told her there was a Hot Shot Young Lawyer I wanted her to meet – I thought, and still do," she emphasised, "that you are perfect for each other." Will shook his head and waved the idea away.

"When I arrived at your house I was quite nervous and you introduced me to several important clients of yours, then said, 'I'd like you to meet an old friend of mine,' guiding me towards a small group of men engaged in conversation. You tapped one on the arm and as he turned you said, 'Professor Austen, please meet,' and before you could finish, he said, 'Will," and you looked so surprised."

"Well, yes, I was. I didn't know you knew each other. Thinking retrospectively, all of us could have connected the dots," she acknowledged.

"Yeah," he agreed. "All David offered in response to your stammering, 'you know each other?' was 'Yes, Will used to date my daughter,' he was like a smiling assassin!" They continued laughing at the incredulity of the scene. "When I found Angela she was shocked to see me – more so because we worked for different firms then and she didn't really think we moved in the same circles." Diane nodded in agreement.

FLASHBACK:

 _Will stood in the kitchen doorway looking at figure in front of him. Angela had her back to him, busying herself mixing a drink. He slowly walked up behind her, "Hey," he said quietly._

" _Oh my God! Will! What are you doing here?" She asked, allowing herself to be pulled into his arms._

" _I was promised dinner, networking and a cute girl. Guess I got all three," he grinned. "Turns out my work thing was with your Dad's old friend," he said dipping his head forward and rubbing his left hand up her back._

" _Uh-huh, so I guess you are the Hot Shot Lawyer Diane wanted me to meet," she teased._

" _So you do get dressed up for me!" She laughed as he planted a kiss on her cheek._

….

Later that evening, Angela had returned to the SLG offices.

Will was sitting on the end of his couch reading a file. Angela was asleep on the couch, resting her head in Will's lap. Will noticed earlier that she had a smear of blood (not hers) on her face, but she looked too tired to care about it, so he tried to wipe it off with his thumb, but managed to make it worse. He was instantly grateful for the lack of mirrors in his office. As she slept, Will ran his right hand through her hair and down her back. He hoped to soothe her, but he also liked the warmth of her body on his hand, it made him feel closer to her, connected and if anything, it soothed him.

David Lee stood by the long wall of windows looking into Will's office. He smiled at the scene in front of him. Diane crept up behind him and asked what he was doing, he simply replied, "There's a lot of love there, not something I normally expect from him," nodding his head towards Will and Angela. "Yes there is," Diane replied.

"Do you think they'll ever make it official?" He asked.

"What? Get married you mean?" Diane reacted to his question. "No," she replied shaking her head gently, "Will's not the white picket fence type of guy."

"Shame, they make a good couple," he said, which Diane thought was surprisingly heartfelt and without any notion of dollar signs flying through the head of Family Law's finest.

"I've been saying that for years," she laughed, adding, "I'll tell you this though, if Will ever has kids, Angela will be their mother. Can't see him doing that with anyone else." Turning back to her office, she smiled at him, "Good night David."

"Night Diane," as he smiled and walked away, tossing a M&M into his mouth.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Just a short one for now. Alicia, Angela and Diane are having dinner.**

 _Truly Madly Deeply_ (Savage Garden)

Chicago, November 2015 

"How can you do it? Your job I mean. Doesn't anything get to you? I certainly take baggage from some cases home with me," Alicia asked Angela.

"I enjoy it. But, yes, it would be foolish to say I don't get emotional at times." She took a sip of her wine before continuing. "Kids," she sighed, "kids and old people get at me when they come into the ER – opposite ends of the spectrum – those whose lives are only just beginning and those that have lived and been through every emotion. Kids, especially babies, got to Will. There were a few cases that really affected him and I think proved to him that despite what he thought, he really could get emotionally involved."

"The Willoughby case," Alicia said quietly.

"Yes," Angela nodded, "that's one that sticks in my mind. Another I recall from Baltimore involved a delay in giving a patient a C-section and, as a result, the mother and baby both died. I was actually involved in that as she presented in the ER and we admitted her, sent her up to OB/GYN, recommending and expecting them to perform emergency surgery and we later found out she and her baby died. It was awful; two colleagues and I were subpoenaed, along with the guys in gynae. Will was part of the husband's legal team and was suing the hospital. They won, but the whole process made me sick."

"I remember that," Diane began, "it was the first time you had to testify. Your Dad was worried about you but he said your boyfriend was very supportive. I didn't know him at the time, but that was Will."

Angela agreed with Diane, "Yes, he was great," she smiled remembering. "We couldn't discuss what was happening in court until it was all over, but he did explain exactly what I'd have to do. Thankfully, he was second chair and his co-counsel questioned me. But, more than that, he was there to pick up the pieces the night it happened, that was before his firm got involved," she waved her wine glass across the table before taking a sip, "I couldn't believe that both the mother and baby, a little girl, had died, it was just so tragic. I was angry, sad and at the end of my shift I just sat in the corridor and cried. It was one of those, why the fuck do I bother moments, pardon my French."

Alicia looked mournfully at her wine, running the stem between her thumb and forefinger. She sighed before saying, "It was during the Willoughby case that Will and I first kissed." She let the comment hang in the air, waiting for the other women to catch up.

"I see," said Diane, "it was certainly an emotional time." The older woman was unsure of what to say or think. Ideas of a long flirtation, even a relationship between her law partner and, at that time, a junior associate, were flying through her mind.

"I knew," Angela said clearly, "he wasn't about to keep that to himself!"

Alicia looked a little taken aback, but was coming to realise that the friendship that existed between Will and Angela was something special and included an intimacy that most of her friendships lacked. Maybe getting to know Dr Austen wasn't so bad? She could fill the space in Angela's life and vice versa.

Angela continued, "He called me several times during the trial asking questions about Hypoplastic left heart syndrome, prognosis, et cetera. I'm not a specialist so could only give him the basics. He also let off steam and talked about what had happened between you," she paused, "good and bad," smiling at Alicia.

"Will felt so bad. He blamed himself that the trial didn't go our way – said he played craps with the baby's life. It was before the Insurance Commissioner got involved and we thought all hope for the Willoughby child was lost." Alicia finished her drink and refilled it from the bottle on the table, gesturing to the others – Angela proffered her glass and Alicia poured some red into it. "It was the culmination of lots of things, but it was powerful," she sighed, "an almost overpowering urge between us."

"Uh-huh," Diane let slip as she took her glasses off and folded them in her hands.

"Nothing else happened," Alicia spoke quickly to reassure Diane, "at least, not then. Not for a long time."

"Okay," Diane took a drink of her wine and smiled at Alicia, "it is in the past. Keep your memories," she added, nodding her acceptance.

"Thank you," Alicia responded, tears forming in her eyes. She cleared her throat and her voice took on a different tone, "Afterwards, I did something I am not proud of. I went home and made love to Peter. It wasn't a romantic connection, but an outlet for my pent-up passion and lust for Will. Peter was there. I used him, just as he had used me."

….

 **A/N: Hope you like it - please review. In coming chapters we will see more AW moments alongside how Alicia confronts the 'voicemail of love'.**


	14. Chapter 14 Part 1

**A/N: Eli has admitted to Alicia that he deleted Will's voicemail from 2010. Alicia has returned from Iowa and wants to talk. This is the first part of the story. I will update it after the weekend, just wanted to post the beginning.**

 _What Becomes Of The Broken-Hearted_ (Jimmy Ruffin)

Chicago, December 2015

Angela was relaxing on the big old leather chair in her bedroom, stretching her feet out over the ottoman in front of it as she turned the page of her book. It was early evening and the light had faded long ago, so she sat in the glow of a table lamp. Her cell phone rang and she noticed the glow of the screen coming from the middle of the bed. She climbed over the ottoman and onto the bed – she always loved the fact both were so close – and grabbed the phone. Looking at the display she was surprised to see the caller ID.

"Hey," she answered, "are you back from Iowa?"

"Hi, yes, got back last night. Do you have time to talk?" Alicia sounded downcast, but her voice was urgent.

"Yeah, where do you want to meet?"

"I don't think I'm up to going out," she paused to sniff and stifle a tear, "can I come to your place?"

"Sure," Angela answered, "if it won't be too weird."

"Why would it be weird?"

Angela took a deep breath and pursed her lips before continuing, "My place is Will's place."

"What? You live in Will's old apartment?"

"Yeah, I couldn't bear to part with it. Holds a lot of memories and I helped picked it when he was house-hunting."

"No, no," Alicia replied, "it'll be fine. I have the address. What time?"

"Anytime is good for me."

"OK, see you in about half and hour. Thanks Angela."

"OK, see you soon, bye." She hung up and rolled over onto her back. She pulled the grey comforter over her body and sighed. Five minutes. She just needed five minutes. Alicia was coming to her apartment, to an apartment that used to belong to Will – a space that didn't hold any memories for him of his affair with Alicia but had been his sanctum over the proceeding years and a place that she helped both choose and decorate. She loved it here and wondered if inviting Alicia here was the right thing to do.

Angela willed herself to get up and moved towards the edge of the bed. She pushed herself off the soft mattress and turned to tidy the sheets. Walking down the hall she looked at her watch, she had fifteen minutes before Alicia arrived. She scanned the living area, it was tidy, so she decided to tidy herself instead. Looking in the bathroom mirror she brushed her hair before cleaning her teeth. She swapped her t-shirt for a black cashmere jumper, it went well with her jeans and helped to highlight the red lipstick she would soon apply. Sweeping the Coromandel across her lips she was ready for her visitor.

She chuckled as she tossed the t-shirt into the laundry, remembering her surprise when she found her long-lost shirt in Will's gym bag. It was a white Bruce Springsteen t-shirt that she had bought years ago at a concert. The front showed a picture of jeans below the message, 'Born in the USA.' As a joke Angela had written 'Made in England' to signify her mixed parentage on the back. Will always loved the fun of it and would often wear it around her apartment – or steal it for the gym!

She was still smiling when she heard a knock at her door. When she opened it, Alicia stood there looking like a ghost. She was pale, paler than usual and even though it was a winter's night she wore dark sunglasses. Angela stepped back to allow Alicia to enter; Alicia walked falteringly into the apartment scanning the main room trying to picture the few times she had been here when Will was alive. She first visited during his suspension and was amazed at the light; it was so different to his previous apartment and she felt a little jealous at the space comparing it to her own home.

"Do you want a drink? Coffee, wine, beer…?"

"Coffee, thanks," Alicia replied. "I'd forgotten how lovely this place is." Her voice trailed off as she followed Angela into the kitchen, seating herself at the counter.

"Yeah, it is great and it is much closer to the hospital than my apartment was. Although my heart wouldn't have let it go, my head also thought moving in was the most practical option."

Alicia watched Angela move swiftly between the refrigerator, tap and coffee machine as she prepared their drinks. "I can understand not wanting to let it go. Did you buy it from his family?" Angela looked at Alicia, puzzled, she titled her head to the side, "No, Will left it to me. Were you unaware of that?"

Alicia breathed out slowly, shaking her head, "No, I didn't. I assumed everything went to his family, his sisters."

Angela lent on the island counter and looked directly at the brunette. "Will left his money and share in Lockhart Gardner to his sisters. They sorted out ownership of the firm with Diane; I didn't get involved in that. Everything else, apart from what his sisters wanted – mementoes, family stuff – he willed to me. It was basically the mirror image of my will." She paused, looking up to the ceiling, "In fact I need to change it, as he's not here anymore. Thing is, apart from my Dad, I don't have anybody. No further family. No partner or kids. Anyway, yes, I sold my place and moved in here. I think if the shoe was on the other foot, Will would have sold my place and stayed here," she nodded at Alicia, but "he would have used the E-type as his everyday car!"

They both laughed before Alicia added, "I remember him coming to court in it one day and showing it off to Cary. He said he was looking after it for a friend. That was you?"

"Yeah. Technically it is my Dad's car, but I drive it as he prefers his modern Aston Martin. My paternal grandfather, who was English, bought it new in the Sixties. When my Dad moved back from Cambridge and sold his parents' house we shipped the car over the pond. It was during Will's suspension and he spent quite a bit of time driving it – handles very differently to his own convertible."

Alicia smiled, "I remember _that_ car. It was his 'weekend car' and we used it a few times to get away when we were together. Even just getting away from the city in a different car, a sports car, made it feel fun. Almost illicit," she laughed, "guess it was," she raised her eyebrows to Angela, "so long ago…" Her voice lowered and she sighed. "Thanks," she said.

"For what? I haven't done anything."

Alicia looked up, "For making me remember the good times," she said smiling at the redhead.

"Good, I'm pleased," she said returning the beam. "I guess I'm kinda special in that I only had good times with Will. No real arguments, no problems, but that is what real friends are for. Sticking by you and telling you when you are being an idiot. Anyway, what did you want to talk about? Seemed serious." She poured coffee into two mugs and passed one to Alicia.

Alicia sighed, taking a sip of the hot liquid. "Do you remember when Peter was running for State's Attorney – the second time?"

"Yes, I do."

"Well, the night he announced his candidacy, Will left me two voicemails. One told me that he thought we should just stay friends that I was right to not want a relationship. The other," she paused, "the other included an admission of love and he said that he would give up everything for me. Did you know that?" Angela nodded. "I only heard one of them at the time – the one that told me he wanted to leave it. I didn't hear the second one. Eli Gold deleted it. He told me the day we left for the caucuses. He listened to it and didn't want my feelings or a relationship with Will getting in the way of Peter's SA run. Can you believe it? The bastard." She felt her blood pressure rise along with her voice.

 _You know what? I'm not just dropping this._

 _You wanna know my plan? My plan is I love you, okay? I've probably loved you ever since Georgetown._

 _So phone me._

 _I'll meet you anywhere, and we will make a plan._

 _If none of this makes sense to you, just ignore it._

 _No embarrassment, nothing._

 _We'll just go back to where things stood._

"Eli did what?" Angela couldn't believe it. She sighed and put down her cup so forcefully that coffee spilled onto the counter. "He waited you know," she bobbed her head, "he thought you would call him or talk to him. Maybe after a few days, but when it got to a week… he knew you had decided to stick with Peter."

"But I didn't!" Alicia interrupted fervently. "I didn't know I had a choice," she added, sadness in her voice.

A/N: To be continued… we hear more of this conversation and Angela's insight into Will's love for Alicia. Please review and let me know what you think/what you hope.


	15. Chapter 14 Part 2

**A/N: Eli has admitted to Alicia that he deleted Will's voicemail from 2010. Alicia has returned from Iowa and wants to talk. This is the continuation of the chapter.**

 _Who Loves You_ (Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons)

Chicago, December 2015

"He took that away from me. Eli took it away from me," she continued, her voice rising so that Angela felt the anger and pain in her words, before breaking into sobs. Angela came around the counter, swiping a Kleenex from a nearby box and handing it to Alicia. She dabbed her eyes then, through stifled sniffles wiped her the palms of her hands across her eyes, stemming the tears. "Sorry, you must think I'm so weak," she paused, "an idiot for getting this upset after so long," she stammered.

Angela sighed and gave a weak smile, "I don't." Alicia looked up sharply at the redhead, "You don't?"

"No. I think you loved him. I'm not sure if his love for you was truly reciprocated at the time, but I think you did love him and that is why you are hurting so much now."

Alicia sniffed and added, "I did love him. You're right. I don't think I let myself love him or express my feelings for him as much as I should have. I told him I was happy with him. He made me deliriously happy – the happiest I'd ever been – and yet I let him go."

Angela smiled and sat down on the stool next to Alicia. "We all let him go. I could have had the whole marriage, family, big house," she paused and added, laughing, "maybe even divorce with him when we were younger, but I didn't. Neither of us was ready for that."

"We parted because of my kids," Alicia began, "there was a problem with Grace and it made me realize I'd taken them for granted, I'd spent too long putting myself and my relationship with Will above them. I needed to end it before it got out of hand and someone got hurt." She looked Angela in the eye, "One of them got hurt."

"But instead you and Will were the ones hurting," Angela gave a nod to Alicia.

"Yes," she answered quietly. "I threw plates at Eli. I lost it. I totally lost it."

"What?" Angela asked, her eyes widening as she scanned Alicia's face for answers.

"I couldn't believe he deleted the message and kept the call from me all this time. Even when Will died he…" her voice trailed off and she pressed her lips together to stop herself from crying, "he didn't tell me."

"Plates! Blimey! I think he got your message. Would hate to come up against you in court." Her comment made Alicia's mouth turn into a half smile.

"I was angry that he denied me the chance to hear the message, to make up my own mind what I would do. I didn't get the opportunity to make a plan with Will."

"You can't say for certain that things would have been rosy for you and Will. After all, you did have a relationship; you got to see what it was like to take him to bed and have him demonstrate his love for you. A plan might not have changed anything. Do you think it would have changed anything?"

"I don't know, I'll never know," she answered sadly, staring into her cooling coffee.

…..

"He told me he loved me once, at the end of a phone call during our affair, it just came out," Alicia smiled and shook her head, "it was the most natural thing in the world to come from his lips, but took both of us by surprise. He quickly backtracked and we both said it was just a slip, but I really believe he meant it."

"He freaked out a little about the fact he said it. It was true for him," Angela reassured her. "He didn't want to scare you or force you to confront your real feelings, especially as you didn't seem to want to take the relationship further."

"What do you mean?"

Angela ran her tongue along her top lip, "You, err.., didn't seem to want a full relationship. You didn't want him to meet your kids and I think he saw that as a barrier you put up – they were your priority, _and rightly so_ , but you used them as a wall between you and potential happiness."

"Huh, he did ask me if I thought he should meet my kids. I said no."

"There you go. He wanted to make things right. He knew what you guys were doing would cause problems, but he really wanted to come out of the shadows. He didn't want to hide the relationship he had waited his whole life for."

Alicia smiled and sipped her coffee.

"Do you think he loved me when he died?"

Angela laughed nervously, biting her bottom lip and turning away from Alicia. "He loved you," she said quietly, reassuring the brunette, "however, the pain you caused him meant that he didn't see a relationship in your future." Alicia looked stunned. "At least in the immediate future. If there hadn't been a shooting, in time he may have thought about it if you divorced Peter. If he survived being shot," she paused, "it is difficult to say, but he would have taken it as a point for contemplation, to reassess his life. My best guess, he would have declared his love for you and begged you to leave Peter."

Alicia took a deep breath and stood up, moving towards the picture window. Spreading her arms and placing her hands on the sill, she said, "You think that?"

"Yeah, I do, but," she paused, "who knows what he would have done. Will did not follow convention – he had his own playbook. Or, and this might not be what you want to hear," she finished her now cold coffee, "he might have made a similar proposal to me."

Alicia looked downcast and furrowed her brow. Angela continued, "If he had asked, would you have left Peter and pursued a relationship – a life – with Will?"

She sighed and felt tears welling in her eyes. "I don't know. I honestly do not know. I have kids – they were younger and at home then," her breathing quickened and she wiped a tear away with her right hand, "and there was Diane…" She let the thought of the older woman hang in the air.

"Diane was concerned for the firm when you and Will got it together. When he was shot you were at Florrick/Agos. It was a different situation. If it was made clear from the start and you definitively split from Peter, I don't think she, or Cary, could argue. Peter would suffer and Eli would have a fit, but at the end of the day, you were two people and the love in your hearts should be the most important thing. I wouldn't mind; I just wanted Will to be happy."

Alicia let one corner of her mouth turn up ever so slightly as she took a deep breath and turned to look out of the window.

….

 **A/N: OK, what do you think? I left some space for discussion between A &A later on.**


	16. Chapter 15

**A/N: I will come back to Angela and Alicia discussing Eli's revelation and its consequences. I am halfway through a Will/Alicia chapter, so that will come next.**

 **A/N: I realised it was the two-year anniversary so wanted to put something together as to how the women were coping. It is only short, as I wrote it quickly, so I might extend it to a P2.**

Overarching theme: _Save Tonight_ (Eagle-Eye Cherry) (this is a song I relate to in future chapters and associate with the last time Angela saw Will).

Chicago, March 2016 

_The Great Pretender_ (The Platters) - Angela

Angela's cell phone buzzed alerting her to a new text message. She turned towards her nightstand to grab the device, sighing loudly at the dawn of a new day. It was a date she had dreaded for the past two years, although most mornings she woke up feeling the same sense of emptiness, but today, today it was worse. Looking at the message she sat up:

 _Alicia: Morning. I hope you don't mind me getting in touch so early. I wondered if you had time for a drink tonight? Could use a friend._

She closed her eyes, let her head fall back against the headboard and tapped the phone against her chin, breathing deeply. She smiled at the memory that Will often posed in the same way. 'Guess it wouldn't hurt,' she said to herself.

 _Angela: Hi, hope you are OK. I am out for dinner but come by my place about 9._

 _Alicia: Thanks, see you later._

 _Angela: Try not to be too maudlin today, remember he loved you._

After pressing send the final time, she thought, 'Try some of your own advice lady,' and flung back the blankets to get out of bed. As she put her slippers on she kissed her hand and blew a kiss to the picture of Will by her bed: 'My darling, my dream, my boat,' she said reaching for her robe.

Angela felt like she had been sleepwalking through the morning, she didn't remember making coffee, drinking it or even checking her mail. She looked at the clock: 11:03am. How had it got so late? She sighed and got up from the counter to tip the remains of her coffee into the sink. Pausing she laughed at how she and Will kept the kitchen – total disorder according to his sister Sara. But hey, she had her own problems; she had a ten year old and a husband who was an idiot. She was pulled out of her reminiscences by the sound of the doorbell.

Opening the door, she smiled, "Morning," at the delivery boy. "Dr Austen?" he asked. She nodded and he proffered a tablet for her to sign, or in her case, scrawl an attempt at a signature. "Thanks," she said taking the plant from him.

"Bye ma'am."

"Bye," she said and slowly closed the door. Putting the pot down on the kitchen counter, she pulled the card from its envelope and smiled as she read the greeting. She was reminded of Will warning a friend of his when he wanted to date her:

" _I'll tell you three things about my friend. One, she dislikes cut flowers, two, in the morning she likes strong coffee and good muesli, hates granola," he said cutting his hand through the air, "and three, if you hurt her, I will come after you."_

She unfastened the cellophane to reveal the true beauty of the orchid and smiled. Tossing the wrapping in the trash she walked towards her bedroom to take a shower.

Ten minutes later she was rinsing her hair when a pain gripped her, a pain that although not physical hurt so much and caused her to fall to the floor of the shower. As the water tumbled down on her, she gripped her knees and rocked back and forth, "Will, why did you have to leave me?" she screamed as her hot tears mingled with the flowing water.

…...

 _Only You Can Love Me This Way_ (Keith Urban) - Alicia

Alicia woke to light streaming into her bedroom and, groaning, turned over to bury her face between the pillows. She wasn't ready to face the day. Today was two years since Will had died. Two years since her world, and her heart, had been shattered. A lot had happened in that time, some good, some bad and she felt that it would have been very different had William Paul Gardner still been walking in Chicago.

She lay there for what seemed like forever before sneaking a peak at the time: 6:48am. She sighed and grabbed her cell. Checking her messages she couldn't get Will out of her head and his face from in front of her eyes. She smiled at the memory of him walking down the corridors of Lockhart Gardner, one hand in his pocket, the other working his cell, a boyish grin on his face. Then her mind went to him pleasuring her, the touch of his hands over her naked body, him inside her, the taste, the smell of him… She threw herself back on the bed and groaned loudly. Too loudly it transpired as she heard Grace shout, "Mom, are you OK?"

"Yes, Gracie, I'm fine, just remembering something," she replied.

"OK, I made coffee."

"Thanks honey."

Alicia sat up and made a decision. Her thumbs moved swiftly over the phone as she sent a hopeful text.

….

 _Thank You For Being A Friend_ (Andrew Gold) - Diane

"Hey," Kurt said softly as he sat down on the bed next to Diane, stroking her golden hair until she opened her eyes. Man, she was beautiful, even first thing in the morning; he was a lucky man. Diane smiled up at her husband, "Morning."

"Coffee for you," Kurt nodded at the mug he had placed on the nightstand, "when you're ready I'll make breakfast."

Diane sat up and placed her hand on top of her husband's lap, "Thank you," she said quietly.

Kurt turned his hand over so that he was holding Diane's elegant digits in his and squeezed it gently, "I know today will be difficult, so I want to make it was easy as I can for you." Diane leant forward and placed a kiss on Kurt's lips. She pulled back to see the surprise on his face, "Don't start something you can't finish," he warned her. Diane threw her head back and laughed heartily, she could always rely on her husband to pull her out of even the darkest gloom, "Later cowboy," she winked.

She sipped her coffee and gazed at her husband who now stood in the doorway to their bedroom. "Will brought us together," she said to him, "he gave me a new ballistics expert and ultimately he gave me a husband."

"And for that I will be forever grateful," he replied meeting her eyes.

….

Later that evening, Kurt put the finishing touches to dinner as Diane readied herself upstairs.

Diane sat at her dressing table and closed her eyes. It was the first time she had had time to herself that day. She had been busy, something for which she was incredibly grateful, had managed to avoid court and had spoken to Alicia. The two women had talked and smiled about Will and his presence in their lives. She was pleased Alicia was back 'home' although their relationship was still not quite what it had been, but it was getting there. She felt that introducing Alicia to Angela had helped the frostiness to thaw and had certainly brought a little closure to Alicia. She was unsure of the effect on Angela. She was more of a maverick – David Lee called her an Amazon – and so much like Will in temperament and action that she held her emotions close. Tonight she would dine with her husband, her best friend and his daughter. They would remember Will and they would, as far as possible, celebrate.

She fastened a pearl choker around her neck as Kurt shouted up to her, "Dave and Angie are here." She took a deep breath and replied, "Be right down."

…..

Angela returned from dinner with Diane to find Alicia sitting in the hallway outside her apartment. Alicia stood up and Angela moved to embrace her. The two women stood in silence, a moment in time that Will Gardner fought hard to avoid.

….

Alicia took a drink from her wine and began, "The last time I saw Will was the day before. We were at the courthouse and I warned him that the Grants had asked me for a second opinion on Jeffrey's trial." Angela nodded, "He told me."

"He thanked me for the insight then I told him he was the better lawyer," Alicia continued.

"Oh, he loved that, always the Hot Shot!" Angela joked.

Alicia chuckled, "The last time we spoke was good," she nodded and gave a weak smile, "it was good, we parted on friendly terms," she paused to wipe her nose and compose herself. "I am grateful for that."

"I am pleased," Angela added, genuinely happy that Alicia and Will's feud had ended.

"Will called me the morning he died. He rang at 11:32am, just minutes before he was shot," Alicia swallowed hard and felt tears welling in her eyes, "but he was interrupted by the judge…"

 _Will: "Alicia,"_

 _Judge Politi: "Mr. Gardner. Are we about ready here?"_

 _Will: "Hold on, Your Honor. I'll call you back."_

"He didn't finish his sentence, he was unable to tell me what he wanted to. I wanted to know _, I._ _Needed. To. Know_ ," she said, almost begging and moving closer to Angela.

"I searched for the answer. I asked Diane, she didn't know but she did say that he was moving fast on many fronts and that I shouldn't blame myself." Angela nodded; she was aware of the conversation between Diane and Alicia but didn't want to let on that she knew of their discussion.

"I, I, asked Finn Polmar, if he knew what Will wanted to say to me. I asked Judge Politi, but nothing. I felt so empty. I felt like I was missing a vital piece of the jigsaw, almost like a piece of my heart was missing and the hole wouldn't be closed until I found out what he had planned to say. I tortured myself. I was a wreck. Over time, I played scenarios through in my head and finally found some peace in not knowing."

Angela refilled Alicia's glass. "I can't imagine what you are going through, as our parting was very different," she offered.

"You were close to him, you spent his last night on earth together. Do you know what he was calling to say?" Alicia realised she was clutching at straws, but it was a question she had wanted to ask ever since she found out about Angela and their closeness.

"Honestly," she paused, "no, I don't. I could guess, but it would be just that, a guess. I don't want to get your hopes up over something you long to hear or make you feel worse by denying an anticipated declaration. Sadly, you will never know."

Alicia sighed and sat dejectedly staring at her wine. "You were my last hope," she finally said before taking a sip of the burgundy liquid.

"We all have things we wish we had done, words we long to have said, hell, I have conversations with him – in my head and out loud – so it is not just you that has unfinished business with Will. It is an aspect of sudden, tragic death that we have to cope with. It's not fun and it's not pretty but it happens all the time. People learn to get by knowing that they should or could have done something. Fate intervenes in the most horrific way in many people's lives. Some are lucky to evade it. We are not."

"Do you think love ever dies?" Alicia asked suddenly.

"No, it fades, but it's still there. I think there is even a musical about that," she chuckled and took another swig of her bourbon aware she had had more than enough but realised that she needed to keep drinking to dull the pain. "My Dad is still very much in love with my Mom even though he has been a widower for the majority of his life. He has had the odd girlfriend, but nobody serious. He always says he married the best girl and kept her memory close."

Alicia smiled, "True love. I wish my love life could have been as smooth. One girl for one guy."

…

"One of my greatest fears of working in medicine is having to treat a friend or relative, I don't think I could cope and would certainly have to step out of treating them."

"I understand entirely," Alicia nodded in agreement.

"Will once promised me that I would never have to see him come into my ER," she took a deep breath, "he kept his promise but not in the way either of us expected." She rubbed her eyes before continuing, "I am grateful that I wasn't there as I don't know what I would have done," her voice tailed off. She took a drink of her bourbon, emptying the glass. "It was," she paused, "I don't know," she searched for words, "serendipity," she added waving her glass in the air, "that I wasn't there. Will made sure I wasn't at work, he took me to the airport that morning," she smiled remembering their last moments together. Alicia bit her bottom lip and sipped her wine.

Angela continued, "I didn't get to see him. I didn't get to say goodbye. I'll never forgive myself for that, for not being here when he needed me. We thought we would grow old together," she drifted off, putting her glass on the coffee table and moving swiftly towards the piano. Sitting down she exposed the keys and began to play a delicate version of Disco 2000, "we managed best part of two decades and I will always be thankful for that. We changed each other's lives, moved cross country together, had amazing sex, sorry," she offered to Alicia, who smiled back at her, "and deserved to have many more years together."

"Will used to mockingly tell people that we had to move to Chicago as I had dated all the cops in Baltimore!" Alicia laughed with her friend. "He used to say that cops were my 'go to guys' and, to be honest, I've had my fair share of professions, but Police certainly predominate. Only had one lawyer though," she added softly.

"Wow, you really were the female Will! Hardly ever without a date, huh? Do they keep popping up out of the blue like his did?"

She laughed, "Not so much. Some do - those that became real friends. Actually, one of my exes, a cop from Baltimore, Tony his name is," she paused, "he works for NCIS now, sent me that plant this morning," she smiled remembering her former lover.

…

Alicia wanted to get more off her chest, she wanted to share memories with Angela, but she was still searching for answers: answers that would probably never come. "The last thing Will said directly to me was, "I am, aren't I?" and he laughed as I told him jokingly he was so humble. Not exactly Rossetti," she chuckled, "but at least we weren't fighting. We were coming out of the other side."

Angela nodded at her friend. "I'm lucky in that our last conversation was a farewell. A goodbye before a hiatus," she sighed, "nobody was expecting a final goodbye," a tear rolled down her face and she brushed it away with the back of her hand. "He drove me to the airport and our last few sentences together were by the trunk of his car as he got my bags out. We embraced and kissed, and then he said, "Happy Birthday Ange," as we parted and I walked towards the terminal. As I turned round to wave, he shouted, "Love you Janie," and I replied, "Love you too Hot Shot," and that was the last time we spoke. It was the last time I saw him. It is probably how everybody would hope their last meeting with their best friend would be." Angela turned away from Alicia and refilled her glass.

"Will died on your birthday?" Alicia asked in a sorrowful tone that brought tears to both women's eyes.

 **A/N: Again, sorry it is curtailed. Please review and let me know what you think.**


	17. Chapter 16

**A/N: I will come back to some of the issues from previous chapters in the future. For now, a little flashback to what could have happened around the time of 'Get A Room.'**

 _When You Say Nothing At All_ (Ronan Keating)

Chicago, Fall 2011

Alicia and Will are spending some time together in Will's hotel room during their weekend of court-ordered mediation over the Dr Farland case with Celeste Serrano.

They lay side by side in bed.

"So, you dated Celeste for two years, huh?" Alicia asked as she turned to face Will, propping herself up on one elbow.

"Yeah," Will answered with a chuckle, turning his face to look at her. "But as I said, I was a different person then, and, well," he paused as he turned on his side to rub his left hand down her side from shoulder to waist, "we weren't exclusive." He moved his hand up and down before finally resting on her bottom. He enjoyed feeling her warm body and loved that he was at last able to get close to her. For now, she was his and his alone.

"Hold on there, Gardner," she said sharply putting her hand over his to stop its progress up her body, "not _exclusive_?"

"Well," he said slowly, turning her hand around in his so that he was holding it, circling his thumb on her palm, "she slept with other men and, I had the odd moment of weakness with an ex."

Alicia raised an eyebrow at him, "Huh, not much different to law school then!"

"Cheeky!" He responded, pulling her towards him. "She cheated on me with our boss, our very _old_ boss on 9/11, so I think I was justified. Plus, on at least one occasion I was performing a public service," he said sarcastically as he wrapped his arms around her, drawing her close.

She felt the warmth that emanated from his naked body and sighed contentedly.

…..

They woke from a comfortable sleep to the sound of Alicia's cell phone. "Zac," she said, pointing to the screen. To give her some privacy, Will got up and went into the bathroom to freshen up. As Alicia finished up her call, Will came back into the bedroom drying his face on a fluffy towel.

Will's phone began to ring; Alicia noticed the caller ID: 'Jane' and shouted after him, "You've got a call."

He came back over to the bed and took the ringing cell from her. He told himself that Angela either had great comedy timing or big flappy ears!

"Hey," Will answered trying to sound as neutral as possible so as not to arouse any suspicions in Alicia or cause his friend to question him at length when all he wanted to do was return to pleasuring the brunette. He realised that it was useless, as Alicia was going to question who the lady on the line was.

"You rang?"

"Yeah, I called earlier, _many times,_ and you ignored me. I feel so unloved," he said in mock sadness placing his hand over his heart and making a face at Alicia.

"Sorry, I was held up in the ER, had my hand inside someone's chest trying to manually massage their heart." Will pulled a face and added, "Eww," before clarifying, "Diane wanted to know about listeria, for a case."

"Heather Farms?" She queried. "Yeah," Will answered.

"I've already spoken to her, she called me, I think she has all she needs."

"Thanks," he smiled and the warmth came through in his voice.

"You sound happy. You getting some at your hotel come war room?" She laughed.

Will chuckled, "Yeah," turning away from Alicia, "thank you for your contribution Doctor, speak later."

"Bye sweetie. Say hello to the SA's wife."

"Shall I get you a saucer of milk?" He laughed as he ended the call and turned back to face her.

Alicia looked at him quizzically, "Who's Jane?" she asked, wondering if she really wanted to know the answer.

"A friend – a doctor – Diane needed some help on the Heather Farms case."

"Okay," Alicia said slowly, biting her lip as she sat up on the bed, "a close friend?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Will nodded, "a close friend," as he put the phone on the nightstand and sat down on the bed beside her.

"Uh-huh," Alicia stared at him, "did you sleep with her?"

Will turned to face her and put his palm up to gesticulate with his words, "I am a gentleman and a gentleman never tells," he said smiling.

"I see," Alicia ran her tongue over her top lip, "so I trust this gentleman will keep this liaison to himself too," she teased.

"Of course," he nodded as he took her face in his hands. He planted soft kisses over her lips and neck and heard her moan with pleasure as she twisted her body so that she was kneeling on the bed beside him. Will moved his left hand down to rest in the small of her back and gently pulled her closer. She responded and moved to straddle him, as she kissed his neck, his soft murmurs only serving to increase her eagerness.

…

Chicago, March 2016 

Alicia forked through her salad scouting for pieces of avocado, "I realised the other day that I had heard of you, in a way, when Will and I were together," she said calmly.

Angela looked up from her plate, chewing slower than she had been after hearing Alicia's confession. She moved her head from side to side and swallowed her food, "Really?" She was a little confused as Will had tried very hard to keep them apart and had never said he had mentioned her to Alicia. There was a time when Will wanted to introduce Angela to Alicia. He felt that if she trusted him enough to meet her children, then he should reciprocate with his best friend. However, Alicia never did formally introduce her offspring to her 'boyfriend' and once their relationship ended there wasn't any need to bring them together.

"Yes," Alicia continued, "he didn't mention you by name or say you were his best friend."

"Okay," Angela replied, cutting a piece of asparagus and spearing it with her fork, "so how do you know?"

"We were in bed and his cell phone rang, I picked it up and the caller ID said 'Jane',"

"Aaahhh," Angela nodded in recognition.

"It was only recently when you said he called you Janie, that I put two and two together."

"And got five!" Angela joked, taking a sip of her water.

'Yeah," the brunette sighed and nodded in agreement, "at the time he said this _Jane_ was an old friend, a doctor, but didn't say much more about your relationship."

Angela chuckled and a broad smile crossed her face, "Yes, he was reticent about discussing us. Most people couldn't fathom our relationship, people who'd seen When Harry Met Sally too often, for example." Alicia nodded before Angela continued, "That was why he rarely mentioned it, especially post you joining SLG, as even on your first day he harboured thoughts of getting into your bed!"

Alicia felt her face flush with colour and she quickly took a sip of her water. "I must admit that I like that," she smiled at her friend, "I also felt a rush come through me when I first saw him again and, to my regret, no, _regret_ , is not the correct term, maybe shame, no, that isn't right either, but when I went to meet him at his office I put on a new, sexy dress to maybe get his heart racing too," she blushed as she remembered her outfit and their subsequent conversation. She looked down at her food again as she heard her friend laugh.

"Well, you certainly accomplished that! I'm pleased that you were appointed to SLG and I'm happy that we are now friends."

"Me too," Alicia smiled in affirmation. "I asked him about whether he dated you and he didn't give me a direct answer, but I suspected he had carnal knowledge of the elusive Dr Jane," she snickered.

"Yeah," Angela laughed, raising her glass to Alicia, "you're one smart cookie, certainly a match for Hot Shot!"

 **A/N: Just a short update for now. Hope you like it.**


	18. Chapter 17

**A/N: A little flashback to a pre-Alicia time giving some additional backstory to Angela. We see some favourite characters in previous guises too…**

 _Sometimes When We Touch_ (Dan Hill)

Chicago, September 2007

Members of Stern, Lockhart & Gardner are attending the annual Cook County Bar Association fundraising gala. Will has a date that, for once, Diane approves of. He is waiting in the SLG offices for her to arrive.

The elevator bell dings and the doors open on the 28th floor. Angela Austen walks out, greets Janelle on reception and proceeds down the hall towards the partners' offices. Will is perched on his assistant's desk concentrating on his cell phone. Hearing her approach he looks up and gives a broad smile, "Finally! I was getting worried I might have to put David Lee in a dress and take him," he joked.

"Sorry, things got busy," she responded.

"Yeah, I can see you got some of this busyness all over your shirt," he gestured to the blood and bodily fluids on her outfit.

She shook her head, "How long have I got?" as he put his arm across her shoulder and led her into his office and shut the door. "Quick as you can, then I can start drinking!"

Will shut the drapes around his office and produced a bag of Angela's toiletries from behind his desk. She could see her dress hanging up in its travel bag on his coatrack. "Thanks," she said gratefully, taking off her coat and shoes.

"I'll be outside, it'll be quicker, otherwise I might delay you putting your clean clothes on – the La Perla underwear I picked out is particularly inviting," he winked at her.

A short time later, Angela emerged from Will's office. She was dressed in a navy blue evening gown that discreetly highlighted her cleavage and flowed to a fishtail hem that showed off her figure. She had pinned her hair up in a low chignon and applied her signature lip colour. She smiled at Will and gave a little bob, "Will I do?"

Will, who was chatting to David Lee nodded, smiling more with his eyes than his mouth.

"Wow, it's like Cinderella," David smiled, impressed with Angela's quick transformation.

"You an ugly sister, David," Will chuckled as he turned to the head of Family Law, who squinted and scowled in return, "Hmmm."

"Well, enter Prince Charming," Will said as he left David and walked towards Angela.

"You look lovely," he noted, putting his right arm around her waist, pulling her close and kissing her left cheek – careful not to dislodge any hastily applied make-up.

….

Later that evening Will and Angela are alone at the SLG table. "Guess I should say 'Hi' to the State's Attorney," Will said sadly. "Play nice," Angela replied, tilting her head and looking sternly at her friend. "Of course!" He said a little too sarcastically for Angela's comfort.

Will stood up and fastened the top button of his tuxedo jacket. He picked up his remaining scotch, downed it, winced a little before handing the empty glass to Angela, bracing himself on her shoulder. "OK," he said, walking away from the table and the redhead hoping he wouldn't say something he would regret. Angela swirled her drink as she watched Will approach Peter Florrick and hold out his hand. She was the only person in the room aware that Will held a deep, unrequited love for Peter's wife. He had been to Law School with Alicia and they had formed a friendship that could have been so much more, but Peter entered her life and Alicia found herself pregnant soon after graduation. A swift marriage to Peter and a second child soon followed, meaning that she was, forever, out of his reach. Indeed, since Mrs Florrick had given up her legal career and become a stay-at-home Mom, Will hadn't seen Alicia in years. He had hoped she would have accompanied her husband to the gala, but he knew in his heart that she wouldn't go. She hated events like this and always put her family first.

Angela sipped her drink, pleased that from her vantage point everything seemed to be going well. She finished off the bourbon in her glass and decided to get a refill. On her way to the bar she heard a familiar voice.

"Angie, hey, it is you!"

"Hi Henry," she smiled at Will's basketball buddy Judge Henry Baxter. Will and Henry had been friends for years and she knew him quite well. They talked briefly before she returned to the table.

Will sighed as he sat down beside Angela. Without looking in his direction she slid a fresh scotch over to him, "That good, huh."

"I hate that guy," he said, shaking his head before taking a drink of the amber liquid. Angela rubbed his forearm and he covered her fingers with his free hand. "To echo Nellie Forbush, I need to wash that man right outta my hair, let's dance!" he said turning to her. She giggled and stood up. "Oh, that laugh," he said chuckling at her.

….

Diane was sitting alone at the SLG table when she was approached by Lionel Deerfield. "May I?" he asked, gesticulating at the empty chair next to her.

"Of course," Diane replied, smiling as she bobbed her head towards the esteemed lawyer.

"Is Will around?"

Diane chuckled, "He's dancing," using her forefinger that was clutching her glass she pointed to the dance floor.

"David's daughter?" he questioned.

"Yes," she nodded.

"He's still in Cambridge isn't he?"

"Yes, he's loving it," a broad smile crossed her face as she shook her head gently, "for all he spent most of his career practising law in the US, he fitted back into the British system like a comfy slipper."

"Well, I've never thought of David as a comfy slipper before!" he chuckled.

Diane laughed with him, "Well, he's enjoying teaching and being Master of a college. Plus, his mother lives nearby and she is quite elderly now, so it is good for her to have him close."

"I concur that teaching is rewarding," he smiled and took a sip of his drink.

"Why did you want Will?"

"Nothing that can't wait. They're getting quite cosy," he noted to Diane as the song waned and Angela twisted her long arms around Will's neck while resting her head on his shoulder.

"Many a young man meets a girl he does not marry, but whom he cannot quite get out of his system. Courtship and romance are followed by a life-long affection, together with nagging thoughts of what might have been." Diane said to Lionel, unaware that Will probably had nagging thoughts of two women, only one of which was in the room.

As Angela's hands parted she let her right hand fall down his left arm until they were holding hands. Gently squeezing his hand in her, she led him from the dance floor, "I'm going to the bathroom, meet you back at the table?"

"OK," he replied, a happy smile on his face, "I'll get us some drinks." She nodded at him as she turned towards the restrooms remembering a similar scenario the day they met.

...

"Lionel!" A voice from behind Diane called. They both turn to see a fellow lawyer who nods in their direction. "Excuse me," Lionel says as he gets up to talk to the gentleman.

Almost immediately Charles Abernathy sat down on Diane's left side, "Hello," he said cheerfully. Despite the late hour and the vast quantities of alcohol on offer, the liberal lawyer was chirpy.

"Charles, how are you?" Diane asked, turning to face her friend.

"I am good Diane, very good. I was wondering if you could sponsor me," he said, pulling out a crumbled sponsor form from his tux, "I'm running the Chicago Marathon for Greenpeace in a couple of weeks."

Diane laughed, "Of course," as she removed her spectacles from her purse to examine the form.

As Diane completed her pledge, Angela swept over to the table and flung her arms around Charles' neck, "Lovely to see you Charlie, Dad was asking after you," she said as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Angie, my dear, always a flirt!" He said winking at her. "I know you'll sponsor me," he added, pushing the paper towards her. She smiled and picked up Diane's pen to fill it in.

Will returned to the group and handed Angela a new drink, "What did I miss?"

"This wonderful gentleman is running the Chicago Marathon for charity, he needs more sponsors," she smiled at Charles as she said it.

"OK," Will said, pulling a pen from his inside pocket, "then we're heading out." He quickly completed the form, clicked his pen, and, as he put it back in his jacket whispered to Angela, "I'm looking forward to getting you on your own." She giggled flirtatiously and surreptitiously ran her hand up his thigh under the table. She felt him tense and take a deep breath.

"Thank you all," Abernathy said clasping his hands together. "Well, good luck Charles and good night everyone," Will said standing up and fastening the button on his jacket, as was his custom. Angela said her goodnights, fished her purse out from under the table and stood next to him, linking arms as they walked towards the exit.

 **A/N: This was a bit of fun. Let me know what you think.**


	19. Chapter 18

**A/N: We haven't had an early chapter for a while. This gives a bit of background to Will and Angela and also, in a way, allows for them to eventually stop dating but stay together. I'm not too happy with it, but subsequent chapters should make up for it.**

 _Save The Last Dance For Me_ (The Drifters)

Baltimore, December 1999

Angela's paternal grandparents are visiting for the holidays and will meet Will for the first time. They spend a few days in Baltimore before moving on to Chicago.

"Thanks for offering to come with me to pick up Gran and Grandpa," she smirked at Will as they stood in the arrivals hall. "Granny, in particular, has been very eager to meet you, so I guess you can get it out of the way quickly."

"Hmm," he smiled, "so I'm popular, good to know," he bobbed his head with an air of arrogance that served him well over the years in court.

"Oh, no, no, no," Angela replied, grabbing his arm, "she's not some sweet old lady who will be satisfied with a slice of cake and a smile, this will be like feeding time at the zoo," she teased. In reality her grandma was sweet and polite, but would bombard him with questions. As she had spent the entirety of her only grandchild's courtship on the opposite side of the Atlantic, she was very keen to know more about the young man who had stolen her heart.

"What do you mean?" Will asked, a little unnerved. "I'm kinda scared now, save me from the bears," he joked. She smiled at him, "Oh, do shut up!" she said linking her arm through his.

As the first travellers from their plane started to come through into the hall, Will turned to Angela, "I really am looking forward to meeting them. Apart from the night we met I've only seen your Dad twice, and he still intimidates the hell outta me, so it will be good to get to know more of your family."

She planted a kiss on his cheek and squeezed his forearm affectionately. "Ah, there is Granny," she pointed to a white-haired lady in a pale blue trouser suit, Burberry mac and flowered chiffon scarf. She was carrying a large handbag and a hard backed copy of the latest _Harry Potter_ book. Will looked at Mrs Austen and back at Angela, "Huh," he said in puzzlement, "didn't picture that," he added shaking his head.

"Do you mean Granny in general or the book?"

"The book!" He chuckled as they walked towards the old lady.

Angela embraced and kissed her grandmother; Will noted the obvious affection between the two women. "Where is Grandpa?"

The older woman shook her head and waved her hand in the air, "He wanted to go to to the gent's the moment we got off the plane, so I left him waiting for the luggage. I couldn't wait to see you," she smiling at her granddaughter, "and your young man," she added looking at Will. Angela smirked at her grandmother then looked over at Will who was obviously enjoying seeing Angela put on the spot.

"OK," Angela began, "Granny, this, as I'm sure you've realised, is Will. So, Genevieve Anne Elizabeth Austen please meet William Paul Gardner." She chuckled as she middle-named them both.

"Call me Jenny, everyone does," the older woman said taking a long look at the lawyer.

"OK, well it is very good to meet you Jenny," Will said, holding out his hand. Jenny ignored the formal greeting and pulled him into an embrace, "I'm eighty-one, I don't have time for handshaking at my age," she answered. Will thought, yes, David is correct; Angela definitely inherited her grandmother's personality!

"How was your flight?" Angela asked, as Jenny released Will.

"Fine," she mused. "I read while your grandfather watched two films and an episode of _Friends_. He likes Rachel, says she reminds him of you," she added waving her hand in the direction of her granddaughter. Will began to laugh, "Hee," he chuckled.

"Thanks," Angela replied rolling her eyes before turning to Will, "don't know why you're laughing, that makes you Ross." Will screwed his face before smiling back at her.

"Finally, here is your grandfather. Will, my husband Robert," she gesticulated at the older gentleman. "Robert, Robert," she shouted without any response from the man who was deep in conversation. Jenny rolled her eyes before shouting, "BOB!" across the concourse.

Will whispered to Angela, "If that didn't get his attention, nothing will. She's very impatient, just like you!" She playfully slapped him on the arm before moving towards her grandfather.

"Grandpa," she said coming round the side of him to kiss his cheek before moving behind the luggage cart to take control of it from the airport porter. Will, quickly caught her up and in one swift move, manoeuvred Angela out of the way so that he could push the trolley and gave his thanks and $20 to the porter. He felt a little out of place at the family reunion and wanted to appear helpful.

"Well, now, granddaughter, let me look at you," Robert said, taking Angela's hands in his and smiling. "You look good, you're obviously doing something right, son," he winked at Will, who gave a big cheesy grin and bobbed a little from side to side.

…

Back at her apartment, Angela prepared dinner for them. Will came into the kitchen to pour two large whiskies – one for him and one for Robert. As he did so, Jenny told Will, "My father was called William."

"OK," he nodded, a little unsure of what to reply. Fortunately, Angela came up behind him and whispered in his ear, "She'll love you forever now, idolised her father and I'm sure regardless of whatever you do in the future, it will always redeem you." He chuckled at her words but also at the sensation of her warm breath on his face.

….

While Angela and Jenny were in the kitchen, Robert Austen took the time to speak to Will. Will was wracked with nerves again, he wasn't used to getting the 'be careful with my girl' chat from a girlfriend's grandfather - this could potentially be more intimidating than the dinner he shared with several judges the night he met Angela.

"My granddaughter is very taken with you," Robert began, "she does not give her heart easily, she is like her father in that respect." He took a drink of his whisky before continuing, "Although, our Dave has good reason to guard his emotions," he looked down into his glass, a sadness crossing his face. Will nodded. The old man continued, "She talks of you often," he smiled at Will, pointing his finger in the air, "mind, she tells her grandmother far more than she tells me," he chuckled. "The girl doesn't have a mum and she should, so she makes do with her Gran and her Aunt, who is really Dave's best friend. Dee-Dee has been a great guide for Angela," he bobbed his head as he recalled Diane Lockhart. Will nodded with him, unsure of who this Aunt Dee really is. She lived in Chicago so he hadn't met her and wondered if he ever would. Little did he know that only a few years later he would be living in Chicago and be in partnership with Ms Lockhart. It took the conception of Stern, Lockhart & Gardner for everyone to connect the dots.

"Anyway, who knows what secrets women share," Robert said, taking another drink of his whisky, "like the contents of their handbags, never to cross the minds of mere menfolk!" he joked. Will laughed with him, unsure of where the conversation was going, but certain that potentially Angela didn't have enough liquor to get him to the end.

"Angela loves you," Bob continued. The statement was not new to Will, but it was unusual hearing it from this particular source, causing him to look up in surprise.

"And I love her very much," Will added, certain a goofy grin had crossed his face.

After a long pause in which he took a slurp of his drink, Bob replied, "Good," nodding at the young man opposite him. "You've had your heart broken, Will," he said as he swilled the amber liquid around the glass in his hand. Will was shocked by his statement and felt his surprise was evident on his face. "Err," he stumbled, "yes, Sir, I have," he took a breath, "in the past." Will thought to himself, boy, this guy gets straight to it – maybe he should have been a lawyer, not his son.

Bob nodded, "I can tell. You remind me a little of my son, he had his heart broken when Valerie passed." His words were quiet and heartfelt, and made Will's breath catch in his throat. Will realised that he actually knew very little of Angela's mother, as she herself didn't knew her for very many years, being only a young child when she died.

"Oh, and quit this 'Sir' malarkey, that and Ma'am, really irritate me about Americans. They think they are being polite but what they are actually doing is making you feel old and covering their tracks because they forgot your name! Call me Bob."

"Okay," Will said, smiling at the old man.

"I don't want you to break my granddaughter's heart and I hope she won't break yours," he said pointedly. Will looked at him pensively, again a little unsure of what his companion was going to say.

"Angela is very independent and," he paused, "she likes her fun." Will smiled and bobbed his head at the comment. "I don't know if you two have talked about the future, or if you just keep it in the here and now…" he queried.

Will pushed his lips together and thought for a moment before answering, "We are happy," he nodded, "and," he paused, "have told each other of our hopes for the future, but not discussed what I think you are referring to, the elephant in the room," he joked.

Before he had a chance to complete his sentence, Bob jumped in, "Marriage."

"Yeah," Will smiled. "I don't know," he added, shaking his head, "it isn't something I've even given much thought to. Even if I had, I don't think I have much to offer as a husband," he took another drink.

Bob nodded, "I was a catch," he smiled at Will, "I was a dashing pilot, a hero of the RAF, you son, have none of that going on," he said waving his hand in Will's direction. Will pursed his lips, unsure of how to respond. Before he could, Bob added, "You have to win women over the old fashioned way – with charm, looks and intelligence." Will smiled and shook his head from side to side, taking a drink of his whisky. "Don't worry, my granddaughter says you have all three," he reassured Will who nearly choked on his drink.

"Thanks," he spluttered.

"But, I don't think Angela wants anymore than that," he said looking directly at Will. "She is very different to her father in that she doesn't seem to want to be tied down. You could say it is because she loves her work et cetera like modern women claim when they don't want to get hitched," he noted, "but Jenny believes that this lack of commitment, the fact she is scared of marriage, is more about her parents. They fell in love and married young, _hell,_ " he emphasised, "by the time David was your age he was a widower with a three year old." Bob sighed before taking a long pull of his whisky. "I hate that I can't take away my son's pain. I see it in his eyes. No amount of time can heal the loss of the only woman he ever loved."

Will found it difficult listening to Bob. His words only increased his admiration for David Austen. He couldn't imagine being in his shoes. Yes, Bob was right, he was heartbroken. Alicia Cavanaugh broke his heart when she married Peter Florrick after Law School and he had been trying to dim the torch he carried for her ever since. Angela had helped. She had broken into his heart and he found he loved her too. Could he really love two women? He had settled himself into being with Angela and loving her, as he knew he was merely lusting after Alicia. His love for the current Mrs Florrick was, and probably always would be, unrequited.

"As I said, Jenny feels that Angela is unwilling to move any relationship forward because she is scared. Scared of what might happen and scared of being the one left behind, like her father was." Will nodded and let out a barely audible, "Yes," as he sighed.

"Angela might never marry," Bob said looking Will straight in the eye, "and I don't want you to be disappointed or to be strung along. If you want to be married and raise a family, be aware that it is not something I foresee in Angela's immediate future."

"I understand," Will nodded, "but," he paused, "I love her and I can't imagine being without her. It may sound corny, but she is," he took a breath, "she is my soul mate and I will never hurt her. Trust me on that, Bob," he said in a determined tone that he hoped the older man understood.

"I believe you son," Bob replied. "I've seen the way you look at her and the way Angela gazes at you to know real, honest love when I see it. Reminds me of the way I look at Jenny and vice versa. You know, we've been married fifty-five years on New Year's Eve," he smiled as he thought of his wife.

"I did, yeah. That is wonderful," Will beamed at the old man.

"Yeah, it is. I can't imagine how my life would have turned out without Jen. But, this gets me back to my point," he said waving his hand in Will's direction. "I don't know if you two will get married, or even if you will have a great love affair, but I do know that you will always have each other in your lives." Will smiled at his last comment. Bob continued, "You may end up like Eric and Ernie, or, if you manage to convince Angela, and yourself, that a lifelong commitment is worthwhile, who knows?" he mused. "But, know this," he emphasised, "the friendship and trust you two share will always be there. Jenny and I have it and David and Valerie did."

"Thank you. And," Will paused, "Bob, know this," he said leaning towards him and resting his elbows on his thighs, "I have never and, _will never_ , lie to your granddaughter. She means so much to me to hurt her."

"I am pleased to hear that," Bob raised his glass at the young man.

 **A/N: Please review and let me know what you thought of the chapter. In coming chapters we will have some more of the three ladies bonding and a little Will.**


	20. Chapter 19

**A/N: Just a short chapter for now, so that we get back to the new friendship that is at the heart of the story. There are also links to Easter eggs planted in other chapters, see if you find them! I love the lyrics to the song with this chapter. If you have ever seen** _ **The Lake House**_ **, it is used in that film when the main characters dance.**

Chicago, March 2016

 _This Never Happened Before_ (Paul McCartney)

Alicia, Diane and Angela meet for dinner at Bavette's restaurant. At Diane's instigation they had started to have regular monthly dinner dates together. The dinners were good for all three women and Diane was particularly pleased that Alicia and Angela had developed a bond over their mutual love and loss. It wasn't perfect yet, as both parties were still cautious of what they said and Angela's grief, in particular, was still very raw, but Diane was hopeful.

"I really like this place," Diane said as they were shown to their table, "it is a new take on a steakhouse and somewhere Kurt is happy to eat dinner." Angela chuckled, recognising it was hard to find somewhere fancy enough for Diane but comfortable enough for Kurt.

They thanked the waiter and ordered some drinks. Angela perused the menu, "This all looks good," she smiled.

"Yes," Alicia agreed, "I'm starving."

Their drinks arrived and, as Angela lifted her glass, Diane noticed the platinum band she was wearing. The older woman nodded and smiled in approval at Angela, who give a little head bob in return. The gestures did not go unnoticed by Alicia who said, "What?" smiling and looking between the two women, "what am I missing?"

Diane rocked her head from side to side and smiled, "It is just nice to see Angela wearing that ring," she gesticulated at her friend's hand.

Alicia turned towards Angela and looked at her hand. Angela waved her left hand at Alicia and removed the band in question from the ring finger on her left hand. She placed it on the table between the women and said, "I rarely wear it, but, lately, I have started to." Alicia looked confused. "It's not a wedding ring or an engagement ring, but a symbol of something more," Angela began, "Will gave it to me, along with a companion piece, an aquamarine and diamond ring. This band fits alongside and under the stone of the other piece."

"You never wear that one," Diane said, blinking away the tears that threatened to fall. "No," Angela shook her head, "scared of losing it." Diane nodded.

"They match my necklace," Angela said as she fiddled with the aquamarine stone around her neck, pulling it across the chain. Alicia recognised the necklace: Angela often wore it and she had it on the first night the two had met. Suddenly more pieces of the jigsaw began to fall into place in Alicia's head. She picked up the band and twisted it in her fingers, "It is beautiful," she said quietly, "Will always had good taste," she added.

"Yes, he did," Diane confirmed.

Alicia continued to examine Angela's ring. She noticed an inscription inside before immediately handing it back, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to look at the inscription," she said, slightly embarrassed.

Diane winked at Angela, who put the ring back on, chuckling to herself. "No, no, don't worry about," the redhead said, "it's a bit of an in-joke."

"Hot Shot Lawyer," Diane added, taking a drink of her Martini.

Angela laughed and ran her fingers through her hair. She sighed, "Well, it won't hurt now," taking a breath before beginning to explain the meaning behind her jewellery. "As you know, Will and I go back a long way. We met on October 15th 1998. That date is important," she noted to Alicia, who nodded that she understood. "We used to celebrate that date as a kind of anniversary, every year. Regardless of whether we were dating other people, we always made time for each other on the 15th of October."

Alicia felt another jolt of recognition. She realised that when she and Will were dating, she had planned a weekend with Will around that date and he had flat-out refused to accompany her on the Saturday evening. At the time she had felt quite hurt and they had fought over it. She would put money on it now that if she checked the calendar, the Saturday would be the 15th. "Okaaay," she said, taking a large gulp of her wine.

"When we had known each other for ten years, Will gave me the necklace. It is my birthstone of aquamarine surrounded by fifteen diamonds. The diamonds represent the date of our meeting. By the clasp is a small disc of platinum that has the digits '10' engraved on one side and '98' on the other," she smiled at Alicia, "he said it was corny, but really, nobody else would ever understand the code so it was good to have that reminder."

"I loved his grand gestures, little things that meant a lot," Alicia spoke up, her voice weak with emotion.

"Yes," Diane added. "When we faced bankruptcy and had to let the 27th and 29th floors go, Will saved a Lockhart Gardner sign from a dumpster on the 27th. He kept it and when we were back in the black and things we looking up, he wrapped it and gave to me as a gift. A sign of good times. It stands on a sideboard in my front room," she smiled and sniffed back a tear, the emotion getting the better of her again.

Angela held her hand out to Diane, offering a handkerchief, that the older woman took and dabbed her eyes.

"So, that is the story of the necklace," Angela said. "The rings were to celebrate fifteen years together. Will gave them to me on our last anniversary. The first is the matching ring to the necklace. It is beautiful. Since I'm going all out," she said waving her hand at Alicia, "the inside of the band is inscribed 'BA' which represents the Brewer's Art, a bar we went to the night we met and," she paused to take a sip of bourbon, "it was where we kissed for the first time," she smiled at the two women who were collectively surprised. Alicia nearly choked on her drink and Diane let out a joyful laugh, throwing her head back in her seat.

Angela chuckled at the reaction to her words and continued her explanation, " _This_ ring," she said, taking it off again and studying it, "is the one that means the most to me. It is an eternity band, so represents the everlasting love and bond between us. Keeping the symbolism of our anniversary, there are fifteen stones: fourteen diamonds and a central aquamarine, which was to match the other pieces."

"It is gorgeous too," Alicia noted. Diane nodded, "I remember when he designed the rings. He went back to Tiffany's in New York, which I understand has some significance too," she queried. "Yes," Angela nodded. Diane continued, "He was supposed to be meeting a client and spent too long choosing stones he was late and nearly lost us a $15 million account!" She laughed and the other women joined in. "I remember," Angela said, "he told me the story when he gave me the rings."

"So what do the letters inside mean? Is it code for something?" Alicia asked. She was intrigued by the story Angela was telling, as it gave her some insight into Will's other life and it reiterated his thoughtfulness and care that she felt had been lost when other people discussed him nowadays.

Angela giggled and ran her tongue across her top lip. She looked at the inscription and read it to the two women, "J N HST." Diane obviously knew what it meant and laughed, her face beaming at Angela. "I think you know I called him 'Hot Shot Lawyer' after something Diane said years ago. He called me 'Jane' after the novelist. So, the J and HST are us. The N is," she chuckled, "a reflection of my English heritage and something that Will always remembered from our trips to the UK." Alicia looked confused.

"Fish 'n' chips," Diane interjected, smiling at Angela.

"Yeah, 'N' represents 'and' and is often abbreviated. Will said, 'Fish 'n' chips go together, just like we go together,' it was sweet and again, something probably only we would understand and find funny. Bit like Benny Hill!" she joked.

Alicia nodded, "He really loved you," she said, her voice almost breaking.

"Yes," Angela agreed, "but he loved you too. He loved you so _very much_."

"He did," Diane confirmed, smiling at the tearful brunette.

"But I hurt him, I drove him away," Alicia sobbed quietly.

The waiter came over to clear their plates, interrupting the conversation. Alicia excused herself to go to the bathroom.

….

A little later the women were finishing dessert, when Alicia asked Angela, "Was Will 'The One' for you?"

"OK, wasn't expecting that," she leant forward in her seat and let out a deep breath. "I think in our entire lives Will and I truly only loved two people, in a romantic way. Besides each other, I loved a detective and Will loved you. He loved you for most of his adult life," she said meaningfully.

"Who was the other love of your life, if you don't mind me asking?"

Diane sighed and looked down at her plate. She knew that Angela struggled with relationships and rarely stayed with a man longer than a few weeks, so for her to commit to somebody like Frank meant a great deal to her and, as a result, it caused her a lot of pain when they split up.

"Frank," Angela paused and smiled to herself, "Frank Seabrook. He's a Police detective and I haven't spoken to him in a long time, not since before Will died."

"Was that because you and Will were," she hesitated, " _together_?"

"Not exactly. I saw him a few weeks before I went to Africa, told him I was leaving and he didn't say anything. I don't know what I was expecting," she looked into the distance avoiding Alicia's gaze, "a declaration of undying love or being asked to stay, but it cemented my belief that there was never going to be anything between us again."

"I'm sorry," Alicia said.

"Don't be," Angela answered her concerned look, "I don't think I'm destined for a happy ever after, not now, and," she bit her lip, turning back to the brunette, "anyway, he's getting married."

"What?" Diane looked up, somewhat surprised by Angela's revelation.

"Oh," Alicia looked downcast for her friend; she reached out and grabbed Angela's hand, squeezing it gently.

"How do you know this?" Diane asked.

"Well," Angela let out a deep breath before taking a drink of her wine, "a few months ago we'd been out for drinks and you two both left early. I stayed on for a while and across the bar, saw Frank. He was with a few guys from the station and didn't see me. I left without talking to him." "OK," Diane nodded. Angela took another sip before continuing, "When I got home I wished I'd approached him, but didn't have the courage to ring him. So, every now and then, I'd go back to the bar in the hope of 'bumping into' him. Not the brightest plan," she smiled, "but not the stupidest either."

"So, you saw him?" Alicia asked.

"No, I haven't seen him since that first time. But, last Friday, I ran into his old partner, Johnny, and he told me that Frank was engaged. He's getting married in July."

" _Oh,_ " both women appeared to say in unison. "Yeaaaah," Angela said slowly, sighing before downing her espresso. "We can all have bad timing," she added, getting to her feet and pulling some notes out of her wallet to place on the table, "and with that, I'm going home."

"Goodnight," Diane said as she watched her collect her coat and leave the restaurant.

"Do you think she's OK?" Alicia asked as she stirred her coffee.

"No," Diane replied. "Unlike you, she doesn't have a rugged investigator to take her mind off what could have been. Or, in her case, what could have been twice."

 **A/N: So, what do you think? Angela's turmoil is continuing, but the next chapter has Will in it and a little Alicia/Will too.**


	21. Chapter 20

**A/N: OK, this is a short chapter I started to write before I went away. I had this idea earlier so decided to see where it went.**

Chicago, April 2014.

 _Never Gonna Give You Up_ (Rick Astley)

Diane sat at her desk and sighed. She took off her glasses and put her head in her hands. Kalinda sat quietly opposite her, waiting for her boss, her friend, to speak.

Diane moved her hands away and laid them crossed on the table in front of her, before saying calmly, "I need you to do something for me."

"OK," Kalinda replied cautiously. She wondered what Diane wanted. The last time Diane asked her to do something, she wanted her to go to Will's apartment to bring back a box of his things that his sisters had boxed up from his office.

 _It was strange being in his apartment without him, knowing he would never return. She had walked room to room and thought that even after his funeral and the influx of his sisters' brief visit, very little had been touched. She guessed it would remain that way for some time. On entering his bedroom, she sighed. It was his inner sanctum and the most personal of rooms. She straightened the comforter before smiling at a sock lying discarded on the floor. She picked it up and ran it through her fingers. Her mind flashed back to the lone brogue in the courtroom, Will's shoeless foot in the hospital and the moment she realised he was gone. She held her hand to her mouth and sobbed. Recovering, she brushed her eyes and walked over to place it instinctively in the laundry basket. Throwing it in, she noticed one of Will's shirts and pulled it out. Holding it to her face she breathed deeply, taking in the scent. She laughed as her olfactory system took in a combination of Will's cologne and Chanel No.5: Angela. Her laugh calmed as she remembered what Diane had told her had happened when the older woman had broken the news of Will's death to the doctor. She eventually collected the box and retuned to the office._

Kalinda took a photo of her and Will from the box and kept it in her notebook; she would always keep it close. She ran her finger down its edge as she waited for Diane to speak. Will touched a lot of people and LG would take a long time to recover.

Diane reached into her purse and pulled out a small plastic bag that contained a cell phone. Kalinda took a deep breath as she saw the term "Evidence" on the bag and realised that it was Will's phone.

"This is Will's cell," she said placing it on the desk in front of her. Kalinda looked at the phone then up at Diane, her dark lashes not succumbing to a blink.

"We need to check for LG work product," Diane said, "can you do that?"

"Yes," Kalinda nodded.

"Thank you," Diane said, "I know it is ghoulish but it has to be done."

"Do his family want the cell phone?"

Diane shook her head, "No, Sara gave it to me. They don't really want anything to do with Will's work, especially as it was because of work he died," she said sadly, "It is understandable." Diane looked down at her desk before turning away.

"When you're done, give it back to me." She added, turning her chair towards the window.

"OK," Kalinda said softly as she stood.

….

Kalinda plugged the phone into her laptop and downloaded all the data. She spent the day opening files and noting the contents for Diane. In the afternoon she met Diane in her office.

"Well," Diane said, looking up from her desk as Kalinda sat down, placing her laptop on the desk and placing Will's cell phone alongside it.

Taking a moment to compose herself, Kalinda began, "He had lots of information about the New York office, including potential clients, sites et cetera. I've saved it all to your account for you to look at."

"There is also quite a lot of sports stuff, copies of airplane tickets, various personal stuff," she explained as Diane nodded. Kalinda continued, "And he had a surprising fondness for Adele," she said tilting her head and smiling.

"Adele?" Diane queried.

"Yeaaaah," Kalinda nodded slowly, as searched for the file on the laptop and tapped play. The instrumental kicked in partway through the first bar and as the women listened to the emotional and deep vocal, alongside the almost perfect piano solo, Diane gasped and put her hand to her mouth. Kalinda looked up from the machine, her eyes querying Diane's reaction. After taking a moment to compose herself, Diane wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, shook her head and said, "It's Angela." Kalinda nodded and went to stop the track, "No, let's listen to it all," Diane interrupted.

At the end of the song, they heard Will say, "That was beautiful," followed by a gasp and an "Oh, my!" from Angela and some footsteps before the file ended.

Kalinda looked at Diane who looked so sad and lost sat behind her desk.

"Okay," Diane sighed, "well, thank you for doing that," she said looking over at Kalinda.

The younger woman nodded and gave a weak smile. She picked up her laptop and stood to leave.

…..

Kalinda didn't tell Diane about everything saved on the device. However, she wasn't sure what to do with the remaining files and photographs. Did she delete them? Certainly, some images were perhaps meant for Will's eyes only, but should she pass them on? She poured herself a glass of milk and sat in the darkened conference room flicking through the files on her laptop.

Will had saved several voicemails, photos and messages. Kalinda realised that given the dates, some had been transferred to his current device when he upgraded the handset. She sighed when she thought about the care he took to preserve such memories: memories and moments from his life that perhaps only meant something to him.

She'd known Will to take the occasional photograph, often of places or evidence that could be crucial to case, but rarely did he take pictures of people. He was one of those guys that other people often took pictures of. So, it was a little surprising to see so many pictures in his cell phone. However, she was less shocked by the subjects.

There were two images of Alicia in a beautiful scarlet dress. She was smiling and holding a glass of champagne in the Lockhart Gardner offices. The file was dated December 8th 2012. It was from the firm's holiday party. Kalinda smiled to herself as she realised that Will could get away with taking surreptitious pictures of Alicia at the party. She probably didn't know and if he took random photos all evening it would alibi him out.

There were additional, older pictures of Alicia. Kalinda suspected that he had taken them during their relationship, as they were quite intimate in nature. In a series of shots, Alicia posed on a bed wearing nothing but a lacy teddy; Kalinda mused it was probably in a hotel room. Alicia appeared playful and radiant. Kalinda noted that the smile on her face was so warm and loving; she looked happy – happier than she had ever seen her friend. She imagined Will encouraging her to act up for the camera, but by the expression on her face, she wasn't doing any acting. Being with Will had been good for Alicia.

Another image was of Alicia smiling in front of the New York skyline. During their affair, Will and Alicia had gone there for work, but had managed to take the weekend. Alicia looked so relaxed, yet Kalinda guessed she was probably anything but for the majority of the trip, given that they had gone there to meet Ashbaugh! Will had come back from that trip a different guy, at least for a while. He was happy and had a spring in his step that he didn't have when he was dating Tammy. Although she hadn't been told directly, Kalinda was aware of the relationship and, at the time, wished them well. She sighed as she recalled that it hadn't lasted very long before Alicia had broken it off. Afterwards Will had been quieter and had fallen back into old habits.

The remaining racy images were of Angela. Kalinda smiled at the woman who had shared a bed with Will, on-and-off for the past sixteen years. She had been the one person that had offered Will some stability, and to some respects, had been the only person who could calm him.

In addition, Will's saved text messages and emails gave insight into his personal life. One of the last saved conversations was between Will and Alicia, the morning after the gubernatorial election:

Will to Alicia: _"I can't get that kiss out of my mind. Do you think Diane saw us? We need to talk. Will."_

Alicia to Will: _"Yes, we will, when things have calmed down."_

Kalinda was a little taken aback at the revelation that the two lawyers had kissed so recently. She had thought that their affair was in the past. Perhaps it was a one-off. She suspected it was, as in the months before he died he and Alicia had been in a bad place and were barely civil to each other. She kept note of it for the future, in case it came up.

Another folder she found on his phone contained saved messages from Alicia. Given their dates, some messages were clearly written during their affair.

" _Morning gorgeous. I had a wonderful time last night, I feel so safe in your arms that I never want to leave."_

" _I bought some new underwear at lunch… maybe I will show you later…"_

" _I keep thinking back to Georgetown, to watching you pitch and feeling the same sort of lust I feel now when you walk by my office. You make me feel 22."_

" _I want you. In twenty minutes. In my apartment. xxx"_

" _Tell Diane I am happy for you to go hard on me xxx"_

Just as she didn't go through all the photographs, Kalinda didn't read all the messages, as she felt it was too intrusive. She was still uncertain of what to do with the files and folders. Maybe she should give them to Alicia and Angela so that they could decide what to do, whether to keep or destroy. She needed to think, but she also needed to clear her head. She pulled out her cell phone to call a friend. "Wanna drink?" she asked, "Sure," Cary replied.

 **A/N: So, this was a little piece trying to get at the affection Will had for Alicia (and Angela).**


	22. Chapter 21

**A/N: This follows on from the previous chapter as it looks at what Kalinda does with the files.**

Chicago, April 2014.

 _I Only Want to Be with You_ (Dusty Springfield)

Kalinda snapped her laptop closed and stood to leave. She tapped her fingers on its lid, wondering what she should do. As the L/G investigator she was party to a lot of sensitive information and knew a great deal about those within the firm. However, this was different. It wasn't about collecting data for a case, to try to prove or disprove a theory; it was information that had been given to her in the most tragic of circumstances. It was also very personal and intimate, so she needed to tread lightly. She picked up the laptop and walked out of the office.

Meeting Cary in their usual place, she gesticulated at the bartender for two more drinks. "Hi," she said nodding at him. "Hey," he replied.

"How's Alicia doing?"

Cary sighed and finished his drink, pulling the fresh drink that Kalinda ordered towards him. "How do you expect? Not great. Jeffrey Grant's father came to the office today."

"What?" Kalinda asked, her eyes wide as she looked at him in shock.

"Yeeaaah," he replied nodding his head while holding his glass, poised to take another drink. Taking a sip and putting it down, he cradled the glass in his hand as he turned to look at his friend, "He wants to pursue a wrongful prosecution case, for the murder at Chicago Polytech. He claims the SA's office put Jeffrey in the position that he was attacked in jail, suffered psychological trauma which led to him grabbing the gun in court and," he winced and took another drink.

"Oh," Kalinda replied, taking a drink herself.

"Alicia wasn't happy and was really concerned about the ASA, Finn something or other."

"Finn," Kalinda mused, "he was in the court, he tried to save Will," she said.

"Alicia has been all over the place recently. She is desperate to find out more about Will's final hours. He left her a voicemail," Cary noted.

"What did it say?" Kalinda asked, her tone a mixture of concern and interest.

Cary shook his head, "Nothing," he took a drink, "he said nothing. She said it was like he wanted to leave a message but didn't get the chance before he had to go back into court.

Kalinda finished her drink and took out her phone.

….

Alicia opened the door to her apartment and stood aside for Kalinda to come in. "Hey," she said. Kalinda nodded in reply as she walked past her into the hall.

"Sorry it's late, but I have something for you. I was talking to Cary and," she paused, "I didn't want to wait."

"Okay," Alicia said a little puzzled. "Do you want a drink?"

"No, thanks," Kalinda replied. "Can we sit?"

"Yes, sure, come through," she gestured into the living room. They sat down, Kalinda on the couch and Alicia in the chair adjacent to her.

Kalinda sighed and took out a Manila envelope. She spun it in her hands, looking down at it rather than across at her friend. "Diane," she began, "asked me to go through Will's cell phone," she noticed Alicia take a small intake of breath and look directly at her, "to check for any L/G work product or sensitive company information."

"Okay," Alicia followed, "what does this have to do with me?"

"Well, there wasn't just Lockhart Gardner stuff on there. He had saved some _personal_ files," Kalinda answered, making eye contact with Alicia and tapping the envelope with her middle fingers.

"What kind of personal files?"

"Pictures, voicemails, messages," she said quietly.

Alicia sighed gently and nodded, "Okaaaay."

"Will had several pictures of you, some I think taken a few years ago," she said, hinting at the relationship between the two lawyers, "and some messages you exchanged."

Alicia was a little surprised and felt a quickening in her chest as she thought of Will and how he had saved some of their interactions. Memories meant a lot to him. She knew she had meant a great deal to him, but had thought that breaking from Lockhart Gardner had caused him such pain that he had tried to wipe their shared love from his memory. Evidently, she was wrong. He still had intense feelings for her, or enough feeling to keep pictures and messages close to him at all times. She thought of the voicemail he left on her phone the morning he died. She held on to that. She had saved it on her cell and she had copied it to her computer so that she would never be without it – losing her phone and losing his last message to her would be too much. Always cautious. That was her, Alicia Florrick, always cautious. She cursed herself for being too cautious to allow Will into her heart and into her life when she had the opportunity. She felt a tear form in her eye and moved swiftly to the table to grab a Kleenex to dab her eye. She used the opportunity to sit down next to Kalinda on the couch.

"What pictures?"

"I'll let you look at them yourself," she indicated the envelope, "they are," she paused, "intimate."

Alicia swallowed hard and bit her bottom lip, "Oh," she said quietly.

"I didn't mean to look," Kalinda said quickly, "but I had to look at the files. Once I realised the contents of a folder I stopped looking and closed it. The pictures meant something to Will. He loved you and I think you should have them. Whether you decide to keep them or destroy is your decision."

Alicia looked downcast but nodded. "You think he loved me?" She asked eventually.

"Yes, I do. I know he rarely loved women so intensely, but he did love you. You, you were one of the two women he let into his heart," Kalinda said, realising that she had possibly said a little too much.

Alicia smiled at Kalinda's words, "Thank you, yes, I know he loved Diane too, she felt the same way and is missing her best friend terribly," recalling their conversation at the L/G offices the day Will died. "Yes," Kalinda said cautiously, realising that she almost gave away one of Will's greatest secrets, letting slip about Angela when she said 'two women.' She scolded herself as it was unlike her to make such an error, but given her current turmoil, it was understandable. She was pleased Alicia thought she was referring to Diane and didn't probe any further. Alicia felt her heart skip a little. Even though she had heard 'love' from his lips, as a slip of the tongue and been told from others that he cared deeply for her, to have Kalinda say it meant a lot to her, as she knew it was the truth.

"As I said," Kalinda began, "Will kept lots of images of you, some messages and voicemails on his cell phone. I have brought them for you. I deleted them from the cell phone before I gave it back to Diane." She gave a short smile and handed the envelope to Alicia.

Alicia ran her hand across the envelope and circled the metal clasp with her finger, "Thanks," she said quietly.

"I'm gonna head out," Kalinda said as she stood up. She placed her hand on her friend's shoulder as she rounded the couch, "I'll see myself out." Alicia nodded and gave a quiet, "Bye."

Hearing her apartment door close, Alicia let out a little whimper and held her hand to her mouth. She stared at the envelope in her lap, wondering whether to open it or to leave it closed. She stood up quickly and went to her bedroom. Opening the drawer in her nightstand, she saw the old copy of _'Chicago'_ magazine that listed the city's most eligible bachelors. She chuckled remembering the conversation she had with Will about his inclusion on the list. She placed the envelope on top of the magazine and closed the drawer. She wasn't sure she was ready to mix her memories of Will with what he chose to recall of her.

Lying on the bed, she covered herself with the duvet and involuntarily began to sob.

…..

Chicago, November 2015.

 _If You Go Away (Ne Me Quitte Pas)_ (Dusty Springfield)

Angela closed the door to her apartment, let her bag slide down to the floor and leant back against the portal. She sighed, reflecting on another busy day at work and another day without Will. She knew she was struggling to move on and realised that, in all likelihood, she probably never would. For her, Will had been endgame. Alicia had been the love of his life, but he sure as hell was the love of hers. Yes, there had been others, a certain Police Officer for example, but nobody had really come close, or lasted more than a few weeks. She slowly opened her eyes, pushed herself away from the door and shrugged her coat off. Deciding to pour herself a drink, she made her way into the main room.

A voice came out of the darkness, "Looking good, Ange."

 **A/N: So, hope you liked this little introduction to Alicia's reaction and a bit of a teaser for the next chapter. More on Alicia to come as she goes through the pictures.**


	23. Chapter 22

**A/N: This continues from the previous teaser… just a little update.**

Chicago, November 2015.

 _If You Go Away (Ne Me Quitte Pas)_ (Dusty Springfield)

Angela closed the door to her apartment, let her bag slide down to the floor and leant back against the portal. She sighed, reflecting on another busy day at work and another day without Will. She knew she was struggling to move on and realised that, in all likelihood, she probably never would. For her, Will had been endgame. Alicia had been the love of his life, but he sure as hell was the love of hers. Yes, there had been others, a certain Police Officer for example, but nobody had really come close, or lasted more than a few weeks. She slowly opened her eyes, pushed herself away from the door and shrugged her coat off. Deciding to pour herself a drink, she made her way into the main room.

A voice came out of the darkness, "Looking good, Ange."

"Oh my God! You scared me. Been a long time."

"Yeah, it has," her visitor replied.

Angela smiled, "Hi."

"Hey."

Angela walked towards the end table where she kept her alcohol, turning the table lamp on, she asked her visitor, "Wanna drink?"

"Sure," came the response.

Angela poured two scotches and walked over to the couch. Sitting down, she handed one over, "Good to see you, K."

"Cheers," Kalinda replied, raising her glass in toast, "to Will."

"To Will," Angela said, copying Kalinda's move.

…

"Are you back?" The doctor asked.

"No," Kalinda answered, "I'm not here," she added taking a drink of the amber liquid.

"OK," Angela nodded, recognising that Kalinda needed to operate as she often did, in the shadows. "Are you safe?"

"I am." Kalinda confirmed. Angela nodded, "Good. Remember you can always seek refuge here."

"I know," she smiled at the redhead.

"Have you seen Frank?" Kalinda enquired.

"Not to talk to," Angela replied, her tone was a mixture of sadness and realisation that she probably wouldn't get to spend time with the detective again.

"That's a shame," Kalinda replied. She was aware that Frank was in a serious relationship and didn't want to interfere in her two friends' personal lives. However, she felt compelled to ask knowing that Angela was really Frank's Alicia – the one that got away.

…..

"I know Alicia," Angela said in a monotone voice. Kalinda took a sip of her drink before replying, "Really?" looking directly at her old friend, her eyes a little guarded.

"Yeah, Diane introduced us," Angela added, "she thought it might help us," she said taking a quick swig of scotch, "getting to know the 'other woman' in Will's life," she proffered.

"Huh," Kalinda smirked, "I didn't picture Alicia as the 'other woman' in anyone's life."

Angela laughed a little, "Yeah, but I guess at different times, _we've_ both been the OW in her life, even if she didn't know it at the time."

"True." Kalinda acknowledged, thinking back to her time at the SA's office when she slept with Peter Florrick.

Angela walked across the room to pick up the bottle of scotch, she refilled Kalinda's glass before topping up her own.

"What do you make of her?" Kalinda asked.

"I like her," Angela replied, "I was wary of her at first, not knowing what to think, but maybe Diane is right. We both lost something special."

"He was one hell of a guy," Kalinda smiled remembering her friend.

"How are you doing?"

"I miss him," the investigator said candidly. "He was always good to me. Honest. Not many people are."

"Amen to that," Angela replied downing her drink, feeling the burn of the alcohol in her throat, she winced.

….

"I remember the day I met you," Kalinda said, "just after I'd left the SA's office and started at Stern, Lockhart and Gardner."

"Uh-huh," Angela replied.

.

 _Flashback:_

 _Angela was sitting on the couch in Will's office, chatting to him as she prepared to leave._

 _Kalinda approached his door and tapped on the glass. Will gestured with his fingers for her to come in. She handed Will an envelope, "For the Brasker case." He nodded, "Thanks."_

 _The investigator stared at the woman on the couch, "I'm Kalinda," she proffered, tilting her chin upwards and licking her bottom lip with her tongue._

" _What?" Angela replied, "just the one name, like Madonna."_

 _Kalinda lowered her eyelids and squinted at the redhead._

" _This is Angela," Will offered._

" _Like Madonna?" Kalinda smirked._

" _No, more like Batman," Angela replied sarcastically before picking up her purse and leaving Will's office. Will laughed, "I think that's a draw K."_

" _Uh-huh," Kalinda said, turning on her heel and heading out the door._

….

"I should get going," Kalinda said after the friends had talked some more. She was sad to leave Angela, especially as she could see that her friend was really not coping in the aftermath of Will's death.

"It's been good to talk, K," Angela said as they stood up.

"Take care of you,"

"Take care of you," Kalinda replied, allowing Angela to embrace her. She rarely allowed such physical closeness with her friends, but was happy to indulge the good doctor. Angela laughed, "God, we sound like the two hookers at the start of _Pretty Woman_!"

"Nice!" Kalinda smirked, before adding, "well, you have done it on the piano," smiling and winking at her friend.

Angela bit her lip and let out a breath, smiling as she shook her head, "How do you know that?"

"I know everything," Kalinda said softly, as the left the apartment.

Angela laughed quietly and turned off the lights to go to bed.

As she entered her bedroom, she stripped off her clothes and opened a drawer in the unit opposite her bed to pull a Georgetown t-shirt out to wear to bed. On top of her favourite t-shirt, circa 1994, she found a Manila envelope. She picked it up and spun it round in her hands, shaking her head, realising that Kalinda had left it there for her to find. The dark-haired beauty figured she would go to Will's shirts - she really did know everything she mused, as she pulled out the grey cotton jersey and slipped it over her head. Angela took the envelope and sat cross-legged on the bed. Opening it she pulled out a collection of photographs and a USB stick along with a note from Kalinda. She switched on the bedside light and began reading. It would be a long night.

 **A/N: So this was just a little update. Did you think the visitor would be Kalinda? Some people got in touch and guessed – some right, some wrong, sadly I don't have the power to raise the dead! (RIP Will!)**


	24. Chapter 23

**A/N: This is set around the end of 'The Decision Tree' so while Alicia is working at Florrick/Agos. Also, for those of you unfamiliar with The Beatles, John Lennon's first wife was called Cynthia. Just a little update ahead of the #GoodWifeFarewell.**

…

Chicago, December 2013.

 _O come, O come, Emmanuel_ (Bad Religion)

Leaving court, Will pulled out his cell phone and called Angela. "Before you ask, I ended it with Isabel. It wasn't right, she was," he paused, sighing, "she was a reaction," he said.

"Uh-huh," she replied, "glad you finally got with the programme, Gardner."

He chuckled, "So, no questions, we can talk later, but please come to our holiday party tonight."

"You want me to come to your holiday party?"

"Yeah," he countered, "of course I do! Plus, I know you have the night off, so can party with me," he snickered

"And I guess the fact Alicia Florrick won't be there has nothing to do with it," she laughed.

"Okay, you got me," he chuckled, holding his free hand up in mock surrender, waving his briefcase in the air, "but, come on Ange, it'll be fun, you, me, David Lee," he teased.

Angela giggled and surrendered to his pleas, "Okay, okay, I'll come," she said finally.

"Good, I've missed you around the office," he said honestly.

"Especially now you haven't got Alicia to ogle," she mocked him.

"Oi! That was low, even for you," he countered.

"Sorry, guess the ogling will have to stay in the courtroom," she chuckled.

He let out a short breath, "I, I, I don't know what to say to that," he replied.

"Because it's true."

"Yeah, because it's true," he said sadly. "But, I'm over her, Ange, can't go there. She has made it clear and there's no going back."

"Hmmm," she mused, "you're not over her honey, however much you keep telling yourself. But for the moment, I'm just happy you're in a better place. See you tonight."

Will had arrived at his car and opened the door as he replied, "Damn you Freud! See you about eight. Love you."

…..

Later that evening, Will sat at his desk, a barely-touched glass of champagne beside him. He had just spoken to Alicia on the telephone about Ashbaugh's will. He still struggled to talk to her civilly recalling how she ripped his heart in two when she and Cary simultaneously ripped his firm in two. He sighed and fiddled with his Mont Blanc pen, flipping it between his fingers.

Across town, Alicia put the phone down and turned back to her own office party. She couldn't help but think of Will. He was the man in her head, not her husband, who stood not twenty feet from her. She felt disloyal to Peter, even though she had no reason to.

…

Angela reapplied her lipstick as the elevator doors opened onto the L/G offices. She smiled as she put her signature Chanel rouge in her purse, thinking of what her Granny used to say: Only a tart can put on lipstick without a mirror. She stepped out into reception; it had been a long time since she had been here. Since she last visited Will at work, he had reacquainted himself with and fallen out with Alicia Florrick, Diane had met and married Kurt and Bond had come and gone. Will had been uneasy having Angela meet him at work once Alicia joined the firm, but since she decamped to a warehouse to form Florrick/Agos, it was safe and he asked her to come to the L/G holiday party.

Amongst the throng, she spotted Kurt and nodded a greeting to him. Diane walked over to her, "You came!" she said kissing her on the cheek and giving her a loose hug, trying not to spill her drink. "I did!" Angela smiled back at her, "Where's my boy?"

"In his office," Diane indicated, tilting her head.

"Thanks," Angela replied as she turned to walk down the hall towards the partners' offices.

Watching her go, David Lee sidled up to Diane, "So, does that mean Yoko Ono has left the building?"

"Yes," Diane confirmed, "Paul McCartney is back where he belongs," she smiled at David.

"Good," he smiled, resting one hand in the pocket of his pants, "great partnership, let it be…" he added as he walked back towards the party, picking up a glass of wine en route.

Angela smiled as she noticed Will through the glass. She opened the door to his office and slid through the small gap she made. Closing the door quietly behind her, she leant against it and looked across the room at him. He looked up and beamed, "Hey."

"Hi," she said softly, quickly walking towards him. He pushed his chair away from the desk and turned it to face her as she came behind it. Will took hold of Angela's right hand in his left and pulled her gently towards him. She kissed him as she felt his hand on her back. Standing up, he pushed her ever-so tenderly against the desk, so that she was leaning back a little. "Aren't you afraid people will see and tell Alicia?" she asked as she felt him move against her, a shiver of excitement running through her body.

"No," he shook his head, "the firms are at war, I don't think anyone would consider telling her that I was getting it on in my office. I think Diane is just pleased Isabel won't be coming back." She giggled and ran her left hand under his jacket to rest in the small of his back, feeling the warm cotton of his shirt beneath her palm.

He traced his free hand along her jawline and cupped her face, raising it to kiss her passionately. "Seems like forever," he said as they parted. "Mm-huh," she replied in a breathy tone. "I missed this."

"Me too." Will said. "I'm sorry for being a jerk," he added as he pulled her into an embrace.

"That's OK," she replied, "I don't think you're done being a jerk, but you're my jerk," chuckling as she picked up his champagne and took a drink. Will took the glass from her hand and downed the remainder. "Shall we join the party?" He asked.

She nodded and let him guide her out of his office.

….

As the evening wore on the music changed, the soft jazz ended and livelier tunes began to reverberate around the L/G office space as people started to leave. It was almost as if the DJ was gearing them up for the cold journey home.

Will heard the opening bars to the next track and moved to pull Angela away from chatting to David Lee, "Can I take her? he asked, grabbing her hands. "Apparently you have, many times," David sniggered.

He put his arms around her as the song, ' _Valerie_ ' played in the background. As they danced, he said, "I remember when your Dad bought a Zutons album!"

"Oh, God, yes! I think his students thought he was quite cool, then when he told them why they all thought, ' _Awww_ ' and felt sorry for the professor" she replied, leaning her head against Will's shoulder.

Diane walked up to David Lee, "We're heading out," she gesticulated at Kurt, who was stood near the elevator. He wasn't a fan of office parties and was looking forward to getting home and taking his beautiful wife to bed. "Okay," David said. "I think Lennon and McCartney are fine, but who wants to tell Cynthia?" he scoffed as Diane turned to leave.

 **A/N: So this was just a short update for Good Wife Sunday. More to come and some interesting thoughts from Alicia regarding the files Kalinda gave her. Some flashbacks and more current, canon-based chapters. Best wishes and enjoy the finale!**


	25. Chapter 24

**A/N: The first part of this was going to be part of a longer chapter but after last night's finale, I decided to change it to skip forward to the present.**

…

Chicago, March 2016 – before the trial

 _._

 _How To Save A Life_ (The Fray)

.

Diane and Alicia were talking over drinks, waiting for Angela to arrive.  
"My Mom is coming to town tomorrow, for Jackie's Ketubah signing," Alicia said, rolling her eyes before taking a drink of her red wine.

"Oh, Veronica!" Diane laughed, "She's always interesting!"

"You and Kurt are definitely coming to the party? _Please, I need sensible adults there_!" she said, in a quasi pleading voice.

"Yes, of course we'll be there! I still struggle to comprehend how Howard is marrying Jackie Florrick," she said, shaking her head and laughing a little, "when Will and I decided to bring him and his brother, the _alter kockers_ ," she scoffed, "back to the firm to oust Bond, I couldn't even dream of him attaching himself to anyone, let alone your mother-in-law!" She chuckled and took a drink of her cocktail.

Alicia shook her head, "I know!" she said rolling her eyes again at the thought, "I can't believe that after everything, they are the great Lockhart Gardner romance!" She laughed into her glass.

"Oh, I think you and Will gave it a good shot, however much I disapproved," Diane chuckled, giving the brunette a quick wink.

" _It was romantic because it didn't happen,"_ she thought to herself. Alicia looked across at Diane and gave a half smile. "It was good while it lasted, but we weren't meant to be forever. I loved him but I hurt him and," she paused, "I ended it to protect my family. I don't know if either of us truly got over it."

Diane sighed, "Yes," she said in a low tone, "for a long time I thought Will had ended it," she paused, "I told him to. For the firm," she reached across the table and squeezed Alicia's hand, "I'm sorry I did that." Alicia looked up at her, "I know," she said, bobbing her head and giving a weak smile.

The apology Diane gave for meddling in her friends' burgeoning romance for the sake of the firm and her career, would strike a chord later that month, when Alicia would find herself the instigator of a cavern in the McVeigh marriage. She would also have her reasons, but would she feel the need to apologise to her friend, her mentor, her legal partner. To save Peter and to save her family, Alicia had put her friendship and her career in jeopardy.

.

….

.

Chicago, March 2016 – after the trial; Peter takes the plea deal.

.

The doorbell didn't summon a response from inside the smart townhouse, so hammering on the door was Plan B. The noise he was making would wake the dead! Eventually the door swung open to reveal a clearly distressed Kurt McVeigh. He looked at the visitor and mumbled, "Diane's not here."

The visitor ignored his comment and pushed past him into the hall.

"What the hell, Kurt?" David yelled at the ballistics expert. Kurt was taken aback; he'd never seen David Austen raise his voice in anger.

Kurt looked shell-shocked, he didn't know how to respond, he began to speak but no meaningful words came out, "I, I, don't know," he stumbled.

"You don't _know_?" David questioned. "Seriously, you are a grown man, a _married_ man," he emphasised, "and you don't know what happened?" He added, incredulously, wiping his hand over his face and through his greying hair.

"It's not what you think," Kurt tried to explain, "it is over."

"What is over?" David asked, a little calmer. He recognised that Kurt was referring to his affair with Holly Westfall, but he wanted him to say it.

"The affair, my relationship with Holly," he said, looking down at his feet as he tried to justify his actions in his head.

"Good, because if it wasn't, you know I'd say to end it before you even considered approaching Diane," David replied. "I don't like how you call it a relationship, but that is something you have to explain to Diane. I don't want to know the details. I just wanted to confirm it was over. I also," he was interrupted by Kurt, trying to explain.

"I ended it before I retired, Holly wanted a reduced price for my firm and her silence was part of the bargain," he said

David sighed, "So, it's recent?" he asked spinning around and running his hand through his hair again. "You only retired two weeks ago Kurt!"

"No, no, err, yeah," Kurt fumbled.

"So which is it?" David felt himself growing angry again.

"We had a relationship before I met Diane, but, it was rekindled, recently. But, it is OVER. I was stupid to cheat on Diane. I was lonely," he tried to excuse himself, but faced with his wife's best friend he didn't think it was working.

"Don't give me the "I was lonely" crap, I know what lonely is all about and having a WIFE is not it," he began to raise his voice again. "Don't explain to me. Tell Diane."

Kurt nodded, "I will. I need to."

David began, "I'm not a violent man, it goes against my beliefs, but," he paused as he closed the distance between them, "I know if Will was here he would have to stop himself from doing his," he said as he swung at Kurt, his clenched fist connecting with his friend's jaw, surprising him and causing the ballistics expert to stumble a few steps backwards. Kurt's breathing heightened as he rubbed his jaw, looking at David and trying to understand what just happened.

"You don't hurt Diane," David said pointedly. "Now, fix it, before it's too late. I'll see myself out."

Kurt heard the front door close as he sat back on the arm of the couch. He rested his elbows on his knees and put his head in his hands. He realised that he could have thrown away the best thing that ever happened to him.

.

Twenty minutes later David pulled into the Lockhart, Florrick and Associates parking garage and sighed. He knew Dee would be in her office; it was her sanctuary and her protection.

…

Alicia sat in the rear of the car, next to Peter. Her cell phone began to ring. She stared at the caller ID and gulped. "Go ahead, take it," Peter urged. Alicia smiled weakly at him, clicked 'accept' and put the phone to her ear.

"Hello," she said quietly.

"We need to talk. You threw Diane under the bus," came the reply. Hearing the words from her friend she went pale and felt her eyes begin to tear, a quiet, "I'm sorry," escaped before the caller hung up.

Peter turned to her, "You OK?" he asked.

Alicia replied in a small, tear-stained voice, "I've hurt so many people," as she turned away from him to look out of the window as the streets of Chicago flashed past.

 **A/N: I'm going to blend some discussion between Alicia and Angela into coming chapters. Angela might also take on a new role… see how it goes.**


	26. Chapter 25

**A/N: I know a lot of people don't believe Kurt had an affair, but it was suggested, so just go with it. We can all interpret the finale in different ways. This chapter is just Diane and David.**

Chicago, March 2016.

 _._

 _Love Me Tender_ (Elvis Presley)

.

Exiting the elevator on the 28th floor into the reception of what was currently Lockhart, Florrick and Associates, David Austen ignored the pleas of the receptionist and walked straight down the corridor towards the partners' offices. Diane's secretary had been given strict instructions not to disturb her with calls or visitors, so stood to stop David as he knocked gently on Diane's door. David Lee came out of his office and waved the young woman down, with a quiet, "He's OK," before returning to sit behind his own desk.

Diane looked up and smiled in recognition at her friend and he opened the door, closing it softly behind him. Without saying a word he walked across the room and sat down in one of the comfy chairs opposite her. He placed Diane's bag by the side of the desk. Diane smiled weakly at him and replaced the cap on her fountain pen. David could see several balled up pieces of paper in the waste paper bin beside her and wondered if she was trying to put her thoughts and feelings into words.

"I never thought I'd actually be a Hilary," Diane stated looking at the picture of herself next to the former First Lady. It was meant partly as a joke, but had a serious edge. Nobody predicted that Kurt would do anything to hurt Diane, however, the notion had to be considered.

"No," David said eventually, "but Kurt is definitely no Bill Clinton, politically or with respect to any sexual behaviour."

Diane gave a brief nod. "What do I do, David? Lucca and Alicia humiliated Kurt and I in court. They questioned the trust and honesty that is the very foundation of our marriage."

"You need to talk to Kurt. Not immediately. You need time to calm down and you both need time to think, about how to approach each other and what the answers to your questions could mean going forward."

Diane nodded, "How was he?" She knew her friend had been to visit her husband. When she walked from court she left everything behind, taking only her keys that were in her pocket. She had called David and told him what had happened. She briefly poured out her heart to him and, as she couldn't face returning to the court, asked him to collect her belongings. She also knew that David would have gone to speak to Kurt. She didn't ask him to, but equally she didn't try to stop him.

David pursed his lips, "He was quiet, uncertain and afraid. He wants to talk to you. You didn't give him a chance to answer Lucca's question and you need to know the answer."

Diane nodded, "Yes."

"I don't want to know the details, unless you want to tell me, but you need to know. You need to know from Kurt," he said before wincing slightly.

"David, what is wrong, are you in pain?" Diane asked, concerned for her friend.

David smiled and shook his head, a little embarrassed, "I hit Kurt," he said holding up his hand to display his reddened and split knuckles.

"Oh, David," Diane laughed, "defending my honour, like an eighteenth-century gent! Is he OK?"

"Well, it wasn't exactly a duel, I caught him off guard. Yeah, he'll be fine. Hurt his pride more than anything. The look on his face suggested he knew he deserved it for hurting you." Diane bobbed her head.

"I am struggling to comprehend what happened in court," she began. "I know Lucca was doing what we all do, zealously defending our client, but, but," she stumbled, "I can't believe they would bring my, _our_ , personal life into it. That is just so low and I can't forgive them, at least at the moment."

"You don't have to," he shook his head, "Alicia and Lucca, yes, they were doing it for Peter, but I don't think, or at least I hope they didn't, do it out of spite or a wish to break up your marriage."

Diane looked pained and pinched the bridge of her nose. She sighed, unsure of what to think. "We have a firm. We were going to take a female-led firm forward to be the best in Chicago. Even David lee had quit wining quite as much. What do I do?"

"You talk to Kurt. Nothing else matters at the moment. You calmly talk and listen. Then you need to speak to Alicia and Lucca. Find out why they did it and then decide if the firm can survive. I don't think Lucca meant anything malicious, if anything she was Alicia's mouthpiece. I think the probing originated from Mrs Florrick," he said honestly.

….

They talked for a few more minutes before David said, "Dee, do you remember a few years ago when you were undecided about continuing to chase Kurt and,"

Diane interrupted, "I didn't chase him!" she scoffed.

"You drove forty miles out into the country, late at night, to see him – tried to make it look like you _just popped by_!" he smirked. Diane couldn't help but smile at the recollection.

"My point," David continued, "was that you arranged a date with Jack Copeland on Friday night and one with Kurt on Saturday. Even though you weren't fully committed to Kurt at that point, you weren't entirely honest with Kurt or Jack, and your actions could be misinterpreted."

Diane closed her eyes slowly and a pained expression crossed her face. When she eventually opened her eyes and looked at David, "Yes, I see that."

"So, what I am saying is, you both could be guilty of ignoring parts of your past. Maybe they are better staying there, in the past."

"Before we married, we met each other's friends. He liked you and Will but didn't care for others, like Francesca and Lyle," she smiled ever-so-briefly, "I asked to meet Kurt's best friends and he introduced me to three young, giggly, women – the fire-breathing crazies!" she recalled.

"Dee, Dee," he said leaning forward trying to calm her, "maybe that is it, you asked to meet his best friends, not all his friends and not his former flames. You don't even know if Kurt and Holly were even friends then."

Diane's face stiffened and a look of confusion crossed her face, "I, I, didn't know about Holly then. I didn't meet her."

"Yes, you didn't meet her. So," he paused, getting up to walk round to Diane's side of the desk, "she wasn't important to him." He took Diane's hands in his, "She wasn't important enough to meet you. He obviously didn't count her as one of his best friends," he said, squeezing her hands with his last comment.

"Or he was trying to hide her from me," she snapped.

"No," David shook his head, "I don't think he's smart or sneaky enough to do that."

"I asked him if he'd slept with any of them, he said no," she said blinking back a tear.

"Again," David said, a little exasperated, but he tried to stop it being evident to Diane, "you didn't ask if he had slept with any of his former charges," he gave a half smile, "sorry, no pun intended, former students, you asked specifically about _**those**_ ballistics experts. He said no, which was the truth."

"Not the whole truth," she said a little dejected.

"Would you want to know his entire sexual history?"

Diane shook her head, "No."

"Well, then, if he had a relationship with Holly in the past, which I believe he did, then it should remain in the past," David replied. He chose his words carefully as he was unsure of what 'rekindled' meant and how recent it was.

Diane nodded slowly before swallowing hard. She looked down at her desk and pushed the papers aside, fiddling with the top sheet on which was written the latest iteration of her note to Kurt. "She's so young, David," she said eventually.

David smirked, "I think she is older than she looks. She was one of Kurt's first students and he has been teaching for many years," he reminded her. "I do not believe Kurt would conduct a relationship with a student, it just doesn't seem like him. I do think that Kurt likes beautiful women," he said placing his hand on Diane's shoulder and meeting her gaze, " _like you_ , and could have had his head turned by a young _former_ student, _a colleague_ ," he concluded.

Diane stared at him. She was unsure of what to think. She wanted to believe David. She wanted, or needed, to believe that her husband was true to her. Contemplating anything else was something she did not want to do, but the fear was there that she might have to. Whatever Lucca implied through her questions Diane was wise enough to consider both potential answers.

Yes, she didn't wait for Kurt to answer in court; that was probably a mistake. But, equally, he didn't immediately protest or rebut the claims. He also didn't shout or chase after her. To David, that was an admission of guilt – even if it was historic guilt. She looked over at her old friend. He was very straightforward, simple even, when it came to relationships. That was primarily due to personal heartbreak and a need to build a wall around his heart, something his daughter had also done. If Lucca had accused David of cheating on his wife he would have instantly denied it and called her a lying bitch. She smiled, as very few subjects got David riled; he was very much the quiet Englishman, but love, family and friends raised his blood pressure. He had demonstrated that today with his verbal and physical attack on Kurt, even if he was channelling the somewhat hot-headed and greatly missed Will Gardner.

…..

A short while later they were waiting for the elevator, so that Diane could go talk to Kurt and David would tell Angela of the day's events. Both Diane and David wondered what would happen after _that_ conversation. Angela had become close to Alicia, but she fiercely guarded Diane, so Peter Florrick could very easily be the downfall of another of Alicia's friendships, just as he had been with his wife's relationship with Kalinda.

In an effort to lighten the mood, David said, "Now, Angela would probably say that if you are looking for hot professors, Cary has something to worry about!" Diane threw her head back in laughter as she got into the elevator car. It would be the only time she would laugh that evening.

 **A/N: So, let me know what you think. I know not everyone agrees with the Kings' plotting. After the sadness of this chapter, we might have some more Alicia, Angela and Will before we return to the current canon.**


	27. Chapter 26

**A/N: Sorry for the delay in updating. To get back into the A/W story, I decided to put in a flashback chapter – hope you enjoy it.**

 **This is set around the episode 'Invitation to an Inquest'. It deals with some of the fall out from Will and Alicia's kiss a few episodes earlier in 'Red Team, Blue Team.' For the record, these are two of my favourite episodes!**

Chicago, March 2013.

 _._

 _Addicted To Love_ (Robert Palmer)

.

Will was woken by the sound of his cell phone. He fumbled for it on the nightstand and rubbed his eyes as he read the caller ID.

"Ange, what is it?" He asked, a little concerned as Angela rarely rang him when she was working unless it was important, vital even.

"Sorry if I woke you," she began.

"Don't worry about it, are you OK?"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine," she sighed, "do you know a Justice Roger Ludwig?"

Will was surprised by Angela's question and her tone alarmed him. He held the phone to his ear and sat up, the sheets tangling in his legs, "Yes, Roger Ludwig, the Chicago Supreme Court Justice. Why?"

"He's been brought into the ER. DOA."

"He's dead?" Will clarified, somewhat shocked.

"Yeah, multiple trauma, internal injuries including what looks like a lacerated liver. Autopsy will confirm."

"My God," Will sighed, "he's one of our clients. What happened to him?" He asked rubbing his face.

"Car accident. Not sure about the circs. I gotta go. Speak to you later."

Will let out a breath, "Yeah, thanks Ange," he sat there in the semi-darkness tapping his cell against his chin. It was too early to call anyone, but he sent a quick text to Diane with the news. He wasn't sure how it would affect the firm in the long-term but the Ludwigs were their clients and Roger's wife, Janie, might need some support.

In the morning, Will was woken by his cell phone registering an incoming text: Diane had replied. He read the message then quickly dialled a number. Holding the phone to his ear, he waited for an answer.

"Hey, Alicia," he greeted her. Alicia was a little reticent on the other end. She was cautious about answering her phone so early in the morning, especially since her most recent slip with Will, lest it might arouse suspicion in her kids.

"Will," she began. Before she could object, Will interrupted her, "It's work. Just a heads up that Chicago Supreme Court Justice Roger Ludwig died in a car accident tonight. His wife may need our support."

After they finished their call, Will showered and readied himself for the day. He hoped he could get through another day without any further complications, but he knew that at some point they would have to talk about what happened. They would have to talk about their kiss.

That opportunity came late the following day after they had spent the day at the morgue arguing a case on behalf of Janie Ludwig.

…

" _I don't want to be wary of you, Alicia."_

" _I know. I don't like it."_

" _Feels like we're avoiding each other."_

" _I know. I liked it when we were friends."_

" _Me too. Then let's do that."_

….

As he left the office he texted Angela: "You home? Can I come round?"

He didn't know it but Alicia held back on her way to the elevator as she saw Will in front of her fiddling with his cell phone. She didn't want to get into the elevator with him. Their timing! It wasn't always bad, but elevators sure as hell played a part in it. Getting into an enclosed space together so soon after their passion-fuelled kiss would be too much. Alicia felt she couldn't trust herself to be alone with Will. She wasn't sure why she had kissed him, although she was pretty sure why he kissed her: he felt something for her - something more than she would admit she felt for him.

On the drive to Angela's apartment, Will recalled his most recent moment of weakness, or more honestly, moment of undying passion, with Alicia. They had kissed in her office. He thought about their 'moments' and they were tied to drama or weakness, but an undying connection that had lingered since Georgetown.

He thought about how he entered her office, yelling at her about the _Thief_ energy drink mock trial, as he thought she had brought their personal life into the courtroom; she'd let problems from Lockhart/Gardner impact the trial. He knew she was upset, and rightly so, about her partnership being withdrawn, but he wasn't prepared for her angry response. She replied to his raised tone with equal anger. Gradually they moved closer until they reached for each other, their mouths meeting hungrily as they expelled their pent-up passions. Pulling apart, they both issued regrets, with Alicia running out of the office and into the security of a lone elevator ride. In her haste she left her things behind but that didn't matter. All that mattered to her was getting away from Will. Will scolded himself but thinking back, they kissed each other. It wasn't as if he had forced himself on her – they both leant in to devour each other with their tongues. He sighed as he flicked on the turn signal to pull into Angela's apartment building.

…..

Will had already told Angela about the kiss he shared with Alicia. What he wanted to talk about was how things had changed. They sat together on her couch, a bottle of wine open in front of them. Angela thought it was only a matter of time before they got to the bourbon.

"Since we kissed, we've been different. It has been awkward between us. I, I," he paused as he looked for the right words, "I don't know what to do around her, how to act. It's not like I think we will fall into each other's arms again, well," he smirked at Angela, "might be nice," he winked, "but being together drives us one way or the other at the moment – pleasure or pain."

Angela took a drink of her wine. "You're avoiding her," she gestured.

"Yeah, but," he sighed, leaning back on the sofa, "I don't know if that is a good thing as it will only let the tension develop until we're alone again."

"Maybe we should go back to the 1920s and get you a chaperone!" she joked.

He laughed and took a drink of his wine.

"I miss being her friend," he said honestly, putting his glass down and moving his body so that he was facing Angela on the couch. "When she first became a junior associate we found ourselves turning back the clock and becoming like we were at Georgetown. I was happy and relaxed around her, we could joke and laugh and, arghhhh," he sighed loudly, "be ourselves, no pretence," he cut the air with his hand over the last phrase.

The corner of Angela's mouth came up in a half smile, "I know. You were different." Will stiffened at the comment. "Maybe different isn't the right word. You seemed happy to be in the office, whereas before you lived for the thrill of court and hated paperwork, but when Alicia joined, you enjoyed being there – maybe you were just waiting for a glimpse as she walked by your office – make use of those glass walls," she chuckled.

Will smiled, "First of all, I still hate paperwork," he said shaking his head, "secondly, you've never liked the glass and I do have drapes, but yeah, your third point is correct," he sighed, "I used to stare out into the hallway waiting for her to come up, then try to look busy when she glanced over at me," he chuckled.

"So childish," she mocked, laughing with him.

"I know! But it was exciting," he continued, getting a little more animated, "I was so pleased to have connected with her again. I missed her and loved spending time with her, even though at the end of every day she went home to her kids, or Peter."

"Until she kicked him out," Angela added. "And you jumped into her bed," she said a little sarcastically.

"I didn't jump into her bed!" he protested.

"Well, you weren't exactly shy about it," she countered.

Will wrinkled his face and bobbed his head from side to side, "True," he smiled.

The sound of Will's cell phone vibrating at an incoming call broke up their conversation. He leant forward to pick it up from the coffee table. "Alicia," he said looking at the screen, "I'd better take this." Angela nodded and got up from the couch.

"Alicia, hey," Will said.

"Sorry for calling you so late, I just wanted to talk about the Hellman case for tomorrow."

"OK," Will replied, "I'll just grab my notes." He put his hand across the mouthpiece and whispered to Angela, "This won't take long – its work." She nodded from her place at the kitchen counter.

Will talked to Alicia and Angela watched him closely as she prepared some food for them. Even talking to her on the phone seemed to unnerve him these days. Not in a bad way _per se_ , but in a sense of not knowing exactly what he was doing. The sexual tension between the two lawyers was palpable and Angela was acutely aware that it would bubble over again soon, however hard Will tried to fight it.

As she moved to place a tray into the oven, she noticed her iPod in its dock and chuckled. She selected a song and pressed play so that the tune quietly filled the apartment. At that moment she thought it really reflected her friend's feelings and quandary. Will looked over at her and tilting his head backwards, furrowed his brow in a questioning manner over the music. Angela smiled back at him, dancing a little in the kitchen, "Listen to the lyrics my friend!" He smiled and shook his head.

After ending his call with Alicia, he walked over to the kitchen and placed his palms flat on the counter. " _Addicted To Love_? Seriously Ange!" he joked. She nodded, singing along, " _There's no doubt, you're in deep; Your throat is tight, you can't breathe; Another kiss is all you need."_

Will laughed and shook his head as he came around the counter and took her hands in his. As they swayed to the music, he pulled her tight, "Aargghhh! Why is nothing simple?"

"Because simple would be boring. And you my friend, are never boring."

He chuckled and kissed her on the cheek. "We should have stayed in Baltimore." She giggled and smacked him on the bottom as the song ended.

 **A/N: So let me know what you think.**


	28. Chapter 27

**A/N: A bit more background to Will and Angela's friendship. This is from the early days of SLG and also features a little bit of Diane.**

Cambridge, UK, February 2008.

 _._

 _My Eyes Adored You_ (Frankie Valli)

.

Angela's paternal grandmother has recently passed away in England. Her grandfather had died some years earlier. Angela and David were staying at the house Genevieve and Robert had made their home for the last fifty years. Will arrived the following day.

…..

Will and Angela lay on the kingsize bed in her room. Staring at the ceiling, their fingers entwined, they were content to stay in quiet contemplation together. Will rubbed his right thumb in circles on the top of Angela's left hand. It was a gesture that he often did – a comforting, familiar gesture that harked back to the early days of their friendship.

After a while, Will said, "I was just thinking about the first time I came here," he smiled and turned to look at Angela. She, in return, looked towards him, "Yeahhhh," she replied.

"Yeah," Will nodded, "I was so in awe of this place, it was like something out of Inspector Morse!" he chuckled, "and then there was the E-type," he said in the excited little boy tone he had whenever he talked of the car, "like a really cool Inspector Morse! I still can't believe you kept that from me," he looked her directly in the eyes and pulling his sad puppy dog face.

She laughed quietly at him, "I wanted to see your face when Grandpa said you could use the car in the garage!"

Will laughed and turned on the bed to pull Angela close to him. She reciprocated and snuggled into his side, resting her head on his chest. Feeling the soft wool of his cashmere sweater against her skin she drifted off to sleep. Will lay there quietly before he too fell asleep.

When they woke, the lunchtime sun had been replaced by early afternoon dappled light. Angela stirred and her movements caused Will to ask if she was OK. She nodded before saying quietly and a little emotionally, "I told Granny."

"Told her what?" Will asked, still a little sleepy.

Angela sat up and leant down the side of the bed, pulling something out of her purse. She gave the small pink envelope to Will. "I showed her this," she said, a tears forming in her eyes. Will knew the contents of the envelope like the back of his hand and pulled her close to him again, kissing the top of her head.

…

 _Two days earlier:_

 _Angela sat on the side of the bed next to her grandmother. They talked and laughed about events in their lives._

" _Not long before your Grandpa died, we talked about any regrets we had or things we wished we had done."  
Angela looked at Jenny and asked, "Did you have any?"_

" _No," she shook her head, "not regrets, exactly, we were very fortunate to do everything we wanted, visit many different places, see our son and our granddaughter grow up," she smiled at Angela and squeezed her arm, "hell," she exclaimed, "we even flew the Concorde!" They both chuckled. "But," she began a little more seriously, "although we didn't have things we wished we had done, there were things we wished had turned out differently."_

" _Like Mom," Angela said sadly._

" _Yes, sweetheart," Jenny nodded at her, "we wished your Dad had had a long, happy marriage like your Grandpa and I, but that isn't everything. We both wished we had had more children. We wanted a big family, maybe three or four children, and bought and renovated this big house in the hope that it would reverberate to the sound of many children and grandchildren. Sadly, it wasn't to be," she said looking down and twisting her gold wedding band between her thumb and middle finger._

" _Why didn't you have more children after Daddy?" Angela asked. She realised that she had never questioned why her father was an only child. She knew why she was an only child, but had not contemplated the previous generation; she just assumed it was timing and to do with her Grandpa's military service taking him away._

 _Jenny smiled and took her granddaughter's hands in hers. "We were only blessed once. After David was born, we suffered through four miscarriages and were advised not to try again. We were older by then, and it was not considered right to have children later back then. I know things are different now and medical science has moved on. But, not being able to give David a sibling was something we felt sad about." Her comments caused both women to become teary-eyed._

" _Oh Granny, I'm so sorry," Angela said._

" _Thank you, my dear. I hope that if you decide to have children, you do not have to go through what we did," she gave a weak smile at Angela._

 _Angela looked down, contemplating her next move. "I'll be back in a moment," she said and got off the bed._

 _When she returned, she sat back on the bed next to Jenny and handed her a small, crisp, pink envelope. "I understand," she said looking at her grandmother._

 _When Jenny looked at the contents, she said, "Oh Angela," and put her arm around her granddaughter, letting the picture fall into her lap, "tell Will I'm sorry."_

…

After she had recounted the event, Will felt his arms tighten around Angela and they lay on the bed until it was time for dinner.

…..

Two days later, Will stood in the arrivals hall, alongside hundreds of other relatives, drivers and tour guides who were eagerly awaiting the passengers of several flights to clear customs. To distance himself from the buzzing throng, he held up a card with 'Diane Lockhart' written on it. It was partly a joke, as she would see the funny side once she saw it and her eyes lifted to the grey chauffer's style cap that he was wearing, and it was also necessary as he was in danger of being swallowed up by the crowd.

The doors opened and another swell of eager passengers exited in front of him and he heard the familiar laugh of Diane Lockhart as she noticed his sign. She walked quickly towards him and brought him into an embrace, kissing him on his right cheek. "Thank you for collecting me," Diane said, "how are David and Angela?" she asked as Will took her bag as they walked out of the terminal.

"David is okay," he sighed, "Angela is basically alright, but is hurting a lot, although she refuses to admit that trying to support her Dad is too much for her. I'm glad you are here," he smiled at his legal partner.

"Me too. Maybe I can take some of the pressure off Angela and be there for David, so she can grieve for her grandmother," she said looking at Will. He nodded. He'd hoped that his arrival had helped Angela, but he didn't know what he could do for David. Angela's father was very much an English gentleman and didn't easily give away his feelings, so he was glad that Diane – one of his oldest friends – was here to hold his hand and bear some of his burden, if he let her.

"Genevieve and Robert were always so kind to me," Diane began, "it seems almost surreal that they are both gone. I thought Jenny would live forever!" she laughed, raising her arm and purse in the air. Will chuckled, "Yeah."

Their conversation continued as they walked through the parking lot until Diane saw the car Will had brought and let out another, throaty laugh, throwing her head back and smiling broadly. "Seriously?" she questioned.

"Well, it was either an orange Mini or this, _which is really fun to drive_ ," he said, his voice increasing with joviality over the last clause. He unlocked the doors and noticed Diane roll her eyes as she walked round to the passenger side of the car.

Will chuckled and placed Diane's bag in the vehicle before he climbed behind the wheel. Starting the engine he looked at her excitedly and nodded enthusiastically, "Feel like a Bond girl yet?" he asked as they pulled out of the parking space. Diane shook her head, smiling as she turned to look out of the window as they left Heathrow behind them.

They talked about David, Angela and Diane's flight before they broached the subject of work. "How were things when you left? Will enquired. He had travelled to England several days before Diane, so that he could be there for Angela and help her and David with arrangements. It was the first time he actually realised how alone the Austens actually were. Angela was the only child of an only child and her father had had only one uncle, who was now deceased. David and Angela only had each other on this side of the Atlantic, and, in all honesty, only very distant relatives of Angela's mom on the other. She had been there for him when his father had died and helped him through some tough personal and professional issues, so this was his time to be there for her.

Diane sighed and raised an eyebrow in Will's direction. "Well, we still had a firm when I got in the elevator. I still think we should have told Jonas that neither of us will be there for a few days. It feels disloyal."

"No," Will shook his head, "if Jonas finds out, he will come back and cause chaos, as is his will. It is better this way. They may fight but at least they both have the interests of the firm at heart." While the two named partners were in England, David Lee and Julius Cain had been left to oversee the running of the office. It was a dangerous move as both equity partners held a deep animosity for each other, but Diane, in particular, hoped having to work together would create some common ground and greater co-operation.

"They have their own interests at heart," Diane corrected. "David in particular has created his own personal fiefdom in Family Law and is thrilled with the ability to stretch his wings."

Will laughed, "Yeah, but he knows we are here for Angela and David. However much he hates Julius and sneers at me, he has great affection for Ange."

Diane nodded, "Yes, he wouldn't do anything stupid at the moment. Maybe in a few months," she speculated.

Will laughed as he pulled off the road and into the driveway of Genevieve and Robert's home, "We're here," he announced.

….

 **A/N: So, this was a little update and, for those of you reading it, it linked in to my other story, "Never Trusted Her" – hope you got the reference. Let me know what you think.**


	29. Chapter 28

**A/N: This is only a short chapter. I will filter the conversations between Alicia and Angela post-finale into coming chapters. I didn't want to focus too much on what happened as people have different (and sometimes very extreme!) views and I wanted to get back to the women trying to heal and laugh over Will.**

 **.**

Chicago, March 2016 – after the trial

 _Video Killed The Radio Star_ (The Buggles)

 **.**

Later that evening, Alicia and Angela met in a diner. It was not the type of establishment that they would normally meet at, indeed, diners held a negative air for Alicia. It was in a diner in New York that she had a tense meal sat next to Will following her less-than-glowing speech at the ABA conference. She also found solace in low-key meetings with Finn in Chicago diners in the aftermath of her run for State's Attorney.

.

"I don't want to know if Kurt really cheated on Diane, or how far any affair went," Angela said quite sternly, sighing, "that information is for Diane's ears only, and," she paused, "if she wishes to share it, I will be there for her." The redhead stared, unblinking at Alicia, "I, I, can't comprehend why you and Lucca would bring Diane and Kurt's marriage into the courtroom. I just can't believe it. You were on the _same side_ ," she said in an exasperated tone, gesticulating with the palm of her hand. Waiting for an answer, Angela took a sip of the hot coffee in front of her.

Alicia bit her lip and took a deep breath. She didn't know what to say. She recognised the hurt in her friend's eyes. It was the same mix of confusion, pain and anger that she saw in Will's eyes the day she left Lockhart/Gardner with the fourth years. Will had felt for himself, Diane and the firm. Angela felt anger for Diane and Kurt. After what seemed like ten minutes, but was probably only about twenty seconds, Alicia began, very quietly, "It wasn't personal." With that comment, Angela's head snapped up so she was looking directly at Alicia again. Alicia realised that the three words that had slipped from her lips meant nothing to Angela, just as the same phrase had meant nothing to Will that morning in the Lockhart/Gardner offices. She also realised it sounded like a mere platitude and wasn't a real reason behind their accusations. "I needed to defend Peter," she said with honesty, "he is my husband, the father of my children and, until earlier today, the Governor of Illinois. I couldn't let him go to jail. Not again." Alicia spoke with clarity, laying her palms on the table and leaning forward towards Angela.

"You undermined Kurt," Angela began, "a man, no," she shook her head, "an _expert_ known for his integrity and inability to bend the truth or defend a guilty party." She looked down at her mug of coffee and cupped the white porcelain in her hands. Looking up at Alicia, she furrowed her brow, "Why?"

"For Peter," she replied again.

"But it was such a sly move. Cutthroat even. Friends and colleagues don't do that to each other."

"Will did some pretty dubious things in his time," Alicia retorted. As soon as she said it she realised she'd engaged her mouth before engaging her brain again. Her snappiness was instinctive, defending herself, as she had had to do since Peter's first scandal over seven years ago. She didn't mean to drag Will into it. Not now. She had loved Will and belittling his memory and his worth was beneath her. She swallowed hard and looked to Angela.

Angela bit her bottom lip and sucked her cheeks in a little, creating hollows either side of her mouth. Alicia surmised that she was trying not to yell in response to her flippant comment about Angela's best friend. Angela let out a short breath. "Regardless of what Will did in the courtroom, or, outside of it if we're thinking of the reasons behind his suspension, he would never, _never_ ," she emphasised, "trade his friendship with Diane for a case. He wouldn't. He had been hurt by an interview she gave when she was proposed for a judgeship and that caused so much friction, he vowed once they made up that he would never do that to her, even if it was at the detriment of the firm." She looked at Alicia and saw tears begin to form in her eyes, "And," she paused, "he respected Kurt too much. He knew Diane and Kurt had something he didn't and wouldn't want to wreck it for them."

"I also did it for myself." Alicia replied, trying to defend her actions again.

Angela furrowed her brow, "For you?" she asked, a small sigh escaping her mouth.

"I need to be free from Peter. We are going to divorce. But, the point has been raised that if Peter was sent to prison again, I wouldn't divorce him," Alicia replied. Angela nodded, realising where this was going. "I would stand by him again, be the good wife, and ignore the pleas of my heart. I need to try to be happy. I let my needs take second place in the past and I lost a great love."

"Will," Angela confirmed and Alicia nodded. Alicia continued, "I can't make the same mistake again. My children are grown and I need to live a life for myself. I deserve it." Alicia heard Angela snort a little into her coffee mug.

"Regardless of what spin Eli Gold tries to put on this, you are no longer Saint Alicia. You may have survived all the crap with your husband and the scandal over your SA election, but I think this is worse," Angela said sadly, "maybe the people of Chicago won't agree with me. You stuck by your man again, they like that Tammy Wynette-Hillary Clinton sound bite." She took a drink of her coffee and, waving the mug in Alicia's direction, added, "I'm really disappointed in you and Lucca."

Alicia nodded, "I know." She looked down at the table and studied her hands; she thought to herself, when did my hands become so old? She shook her head briefly, _damn it_! Not about you now. "I'm sorry," she squeaked.

"It's not me you need to apologise to," Angela said dryly. "In time, you and Lucca need to consider your position and response to Diane. Don't forget you were on the cusp of becoming a female-led law firm together. I except that has been thrown to the curb. Even if there is nothing in the Kurt story, you have hurt and embarrassed Diane." Before she could continue, her cell phone rang and put a sudden halt to their conversation as she looked at the called ID.

.

 **A/N: So, this was just an introduction to their conversation. Not sure where it will go. I might jump forward in time and then backfill.**


	30. Chapter 29

**A/N: The majority of this chapter is based around the events of 5/5 'Hitting The Fan' – Will visits Angela in between leaving the Lockhart/Gardner and arriving in court. It is a short visit.**

 **.**

Chicago, March 2016

.  
After finishing her phone call, Angela made her apologies and left Alicia in the diner. On the drive to her Dad's house, her old childhood home, her mind flitted back to the day nearly three years earlier when Alicia and her peers had left Lockhart/Gardner to form their own firm. It was a day that had brought Will to tears, but it had also been the day Diane had been married. It seemed that Alicia's most dramatic moments had bookended her friend's marriage.

 _ **Flashback:**_

Chicago, October 2013

 _._

 _Need You Now_ (Lady Antebellum)

.

" _I took you in."_

" _No one wanted you."_

" _I hired you - I pushed for you."_

" _You were poison! This firm got you back on your feet."_

" _And this is how you show it? By stealing our clients?"_

" _God, you're awful, and you don't even know how awful you are."_

Just home from work, Angela wasn't expecting any visitors so was tempted to ignore the knock on her door, but then there was another, more insistent banging and she heard a familiar voice, "I forgot my key," on the other side of the door. She put her glass of water down on the counter and went to open the door.

Will was leaning against the wall and had one hand raised to his head, rubbing his temple. The sight of him concerned Angela; he looked angry and distraught at the same time, she hadn't seen him in that state for a long time. He pushed himself off the architrave and moved his hand from his face, extending his arm to grab her around the waist. Pulling Angela towards him with his embrace, he pushed the door with his free hand and closed it firmly with a backward thrust of his foot. Looking her in the eyes, he brought his other arm around to caress the side of her face, "I love you," he said quietly before kissing her forcefully, yet passionately. She felt herself kiss him back and ran her hand up his neck and into his hair. Feeling her respond, Will gently began to walk them backwards into her bedroom.

He had an immediate need for closeness, for affection, to know that somebody honestly cared for him. He also needed an outlet for the rage that had built up in him since Diane told him that Alicia was leaving Lockhart/Gardner with Cary and the fourth years. Yes, he'd shouted at Alicia and swept the contents of her desk onto the floor, but that just created more tension in his body. He couldn't believe that Alicia would do that to the firm, to Diane and to him: they had saved her when she needed rescue and she had thrown it back in their faces. But, most of all, she had disregarded his love for her. She had thrown his love away and he was surprised how quickly his affection for her could sour.

He knew it was morally wrong to throw himself at Angela because he was livid at Alicia; he hoped his anger didn't come through too strongly. He would never do anything to hurt her, physically or emotionally, but he hadn't felt in control of himself. His mind was a blur and Alicia's face kept filling his thoughts, however much he tried to block her from his mind. Sex was not the answer, but for a few moments, it felt good. It was a release and he was ashamed that he had treated Angela that way.

Will knew he hadn't been as gentle as he should have been, nor did he have time for foreplay or for explaining his sudden need for her. This wasn't a fun booty call like the kind they often shared late at night; this was different. He knew it and, sadly, he knew Angela was aware of it too. He had to apologise but felt anything now might feel more like a platitude. He would make it up to her later. Unlike anyone else in his life, Angela would understand his pain and his reaction. After all, she was aware he had loved Alicia for most of his adult life: Alicia had been the one he'd put on a pedestal and now he had to suffer through her betrayal. Alicia and Cary leaving had different meanings to Will and Diane, both felt betrayed, but Will took it personally.

They lay on the end of the bed, on top of the sheets. Angela's silk robe, pushed aside, but still tied at the waist in Will's eagerness. He had loosened his tie and unzipped his pants, but neither had cast aside their clothes.

"She left," he said, tears welling in his eyes as he lay next to Angela.

"Who?"

"Alicia," he confirmed and Angela took a deep breath, reaching out to grab his hand. "Alicia betrayed me. She is leaving to start her own firm. I mean nothing to her," he sobbed, his body shaking with anger and self-pity. He moved to rest his head on her bare chest and she ran her hand through his hair. After he finished sobbing, he explained what happened while Angela listened and attempted to soothe him.

Finally, he said, "I hurt my hand," lifting it up to Angela's face. She touched it as she sat up and he grimaced in pain. "How?" she questioned as she felt it to check for fractures. "When I found out, I lost it with her, I threw all her things off her desk – hence my hand, " he looked at Angela, a little downcast, "I called her poison," he added, a tear forming in his eye before he buried his head in Angela's shoulder. She kissed the top of his hand, "Your hand is fine, bit of swelling, maybe some bruising later, put some ice on it." She felt his hot breath on her skin as he mumbled, "Thanks."

Will's cell phone beeped to signify a new text message. He leant forward to pick his suit jacket off the floor. Turning the jacket over in his hands, he reached into the pocket to extract his phone: "David Lee," he said, "I have to go to court."

…..

"I'm not at work, come by tonight, doesn't matter if it is midnight, two am," she smiled at him, "we'll talk."

Will took a deep breath, "I will," he said honestly, closing the gap between them. "I love you," he said again, reiterating his opening gambit.

"I know," she nodded.

…..

Later that evening, Will returned to Angela's apartment. He let himself in and found the place strangely quiet. He put down his briefcase and took off his shoes, leaving them by the door. He walked over to the drinks table in the main room and poured himself a bourbon. He chuckled to himself as he followed the scent of Molton Brown's Gingerlily, the fiery ginger and sandalwood fragrance leading the way to Angela's bathroom. He pushed open the door to find her in the bath, smiling at the sight in front of him. "Hey," she said, turning to him. He raised his glass in her direction and moved to sit down next to the tub. Resting his back against the side of the tub, he took a sip of the amber liquid, before saying, "I'm sorry." He meant it. The day had been busy and following a late-night chat with Kalinda he felt ready to deal with the mess he caused earlier.

Angela sat up, the water and bubbles sloshing forward and back, slapping into her wet body as she turned to Will, resting her arms on the side of the tub, to say, "I know. Thank you," before kissing the side of his head. He slid on the floor to reposition himself to face her, pulling his lips into a small smile. "I shouldn't have taken my anger with Alicia out on you. It was wrong to use you for my own selfish needs. You are worth more than that and I will never do it again. I am truly sorry, Janie."

Angela nodded slowly and leant forward to take the glass from his hand. After taking a drink she placed the glass on the floor, before cupping Will's face in her hands and kissing him on the lips. He felt his heart race a little and kissed her back, caressing her tongue with his, before he suddenly pulled back. Shaking his head, he said, "No, I can't do this to you again." Angela smiled, "No, sweetheart, you needed me earlier, I need you now." Looking into his eyes, she added, "I want you." Will raised his eyebrows and let a smile slip from his lips, "So, Mrs Robinson, are you coming out here, or am I coming in there?"

…..

A little while later, they lay side by side in the bath. "I know I thought this bath was stupid when you chose it, but now I see its worth," Will chuckled.

"See," she playfully slapped him on the arm, "big is always better!"

"That's what I always tell the ladies!" he joked and Angela giggled.

"I still prefer the huge claw-footed bath tub at my grandparents' house. We fit in that just fine too."

"Hmmm," Will mused, "we did more than just fit in it!"

They both laughed, before Angela said, "Come on, let's have a drink and you can tell me about your big plans for expansion and getting Dee to agree to offices in New York."

Before they moved, Will began, "Ange, I really am sorry for treating you so badly earlier. I hope you know I didn't mean to trivialize our love or cause you pain. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I know you weren't yourself. But, yes, you did hurt me. Today was different to our usual late-night booty calls, it wasn't about needing a bit of fun, or making love. It was sex. Revenge sex. And the worst kind of revenge sex as the person you were getting back at didn't know and probably even if she did, wouldn't care. I can cope with a lot of your crap, but don't take your anger at Alicia or your need for revenge out on me."

He found her hand and intertwined his fingers with hers, "I won't," he said as he squeezed her hand. "I promise. You mean so much more to me. I respect you too much and wish I had thought of that earlier, but it was a spur of the moment thing. I didn't come here to sleep with you earlier, I came to tell you, to have you hold me, but then, then," he paused, "something took over and I just needed you."

Angela squeezed his hand back.

"I wanted you Ange, hell, I always want you," he smiled, "but, yes, my need for a physical release clouded my judgment. I promise that if I need to get laid to get over Alicia again, I'll go elsewhere."

"He he," she laughed, "yeah, go get a random. Get Alicia out of your system and in a few days come back to me. Not totally healed, but a little better."

"Thank you for being you," Will added, "I don't know what I'd do without you." He meant it. They had been through so much together that regardless of what would happen in the coming weeks, they would be OK.

"Me too. You're my bedrock too," Angela said, kissing him on the cheek before standing up, letting the cooling water slap against Will's naked body.

He smacked her playfully on the bottom, "That because I make your bed rock?" he joked. She laughed, before turning and throwing a towel over his head.

 **A/N: OK, this was a bit of background to give an indication of why Angela is always #TeamLockhartGardner and will stick up for Diane. We will see how she deals with the fallout from the finale in coming chapters. What do you think she will say? Why is she going to her Dad's?**


	31. Chapter 30

**A/N: I have skipped over some of the post-finale Alicia/Diane issues. I will put snippets in here and there, but basically, I want Alicia and Diane to have an amicable relationship again. I want them to be friends. If they weren't, it would put Angela in a difficult position and I really don't want that for her, especially given my reasoning for writing her character in the first place.**

Chicago, September 2016

 _._

 _I Can See Clearly Now_ (Johnny Nash)

.

Alicia and Angela meet for a drink after work. They have gradually worked through the issues surrounding Peter's trial and Angela understands Alicia's reasons for attacking Diane and Kurt's marriage, although she does not agree with them. Diane has met with Alicia, but the two have not yet resumed their drink and dinner schedule with Angela. The latter had found herself in a difficult position, but her loyalty lay with Diane so she was cautious with Alicia. As a result, their flourishing relationship had stumbled over recent months. Angela found herself drawn to the impression of Alicia she had gained from Will. He loved Alicia and saw the good in her, so she would adopt that view of the former First Lady of Illinois. Yes, Will and Alicia had their problems and there were times when their relationship skirted the boundaries of hate, but it didn't come to that and Will would not want Angela to ever hate the other love of his life.

Alicia knew she had work to do to reinstate her friendship with Angela. She had worked hard to ensure Angela did not base her impression of her on her actions surrounding the formation of Florrick/Agos. Although she was proud of what she and Cary had achieved, she was ashamed of how she handled the situation and the pain she caused Will and Diane.

To provide a buffer between Angela and herself, Alicia had invited Cary to join them this evening. His life had also changed dramatically in past few months and Alicia hoped she could give Cary a new friend just as Diane had done for her.

….

Alicia looked across the bar and waved at Cary, summoning him to their table.

"Hey Alicia," Cary opened, resting his briefcase beside the table.

"Hi Cary," Alicia said warmly, "this is Angela Austen," she added turning to the redhead.

"Hi," Cary smiled as he offered his hand to Angela, adding, "again," as she brought her hand up to meet his. "Hello Cary," Angela replied meeting his gaze. Cary let go of Angela's hand and asked if either of the ladies wanted a drink. Orders placed, he set course for the bar.

"You've met before?" Alicia asked. She wasn't aware that Angela had ever met Cary, particularly as he had started at the firm at the same time as she had and Angela had stated that she avoid SLG after that. Alicia nodded her head gently to herself wondering if Angela had met Cary when he worked in the SA's office.

"Yeah," Angela replied as she finished her drink, "we officially met last year," she chuckled as she said 'officially' before explaining, "I'd gone to the office to meet Diane and ran into Cary in reception."

"Ooh-kay," Alicia said slowly as Cary returned to the table.

Cary distributed the drinks and running his hand behind his tie, sat down between Alicia and Angela. "Angela was just telling me when you first met," Alicia said to Cary.

Cary smiled and nodded, "You are an old friend of Diane and Will?" he clarified.

"Yes," she replied and, turning to Cary, added quietly, "I also knew Kalinda," with a little nod and sideways glance. Cary took a deep breath and gave a welcoming smile to Angela as he picked up his glass.

"You know I actually met Cary right at the start of your time at Stern, Lockhart & Gardner," Angela said; she looked over at Cary as she said it. Cary looked confused, as he couldn't remember meeting Angela before October.

"Well," Angela began, taking a drink of her bourbon, "it was late one night, really late, the office was deserted, or so I thought!" she laughed a little at her comment, "I was on my way home from seeing _The Rocky Horror Show_ at the theatre and was dressed in costume," she smiled at Alicia.

Alicia smiled back and leant forward, "Which character were you?"

"Columbia," Angela winked at Alicia, "I didn't want to be the cliché Magenta and I'm not boring enough to be Janet." Cary laughed loudly at Angela's comment and thought back to the night he thought he met a hooker in Diane's office.

"Just to clarify," Angela began, "I'd gone to the office to collect something for Diane. Justice had been sick and she'd taken him home but forgotten the medication the vet gave her. I said I'd collect it on my way home. It was late at night and I thought the coast would be clear to slip in and out, both in terms of the way I looked and Will's reticence about me meeting you," she said pointing gently with her glass in Alicia's direction. "However, Cary appeared and asked if I was OK, so I said 'yes' and left, giggling a little to myself!"

Cary was laughing and bobbing his head, 'Yeaaah," he said, "I, I, didn't know what to do or say. I had just started and was trying to make headway, then I encounter this strange character in my boss' office. I didn't know whether I should mention it to Diane or anyone so I just kept quiet. You could have been anyone, a relative or some kind of fancy prostitute!" he laughed.

"Oh, Cary," Alicia smirked, "that is fabulous!"

The three of them laughed.

Alicia thought back to her first year at Stern, Lockhart & Gardner and in the early days Cary did stay late. He was often first in, last out. She smiled at the memory and the fact it galled her a bit at the time as she couldn't compete on that level with him as she had a family to raise, but in the end it didn't matter as she got the permanent position with SLG. Hell, a few years later they formed their own firm together, so it really didn't matter.

….

 _ **Flashback:**_

" _I met your new young associate this evening, Cary," Angela proffered as she stood in Will's kitchen later that night._

" _Dressed like that?" Will said suddenly, gesticulating at Angela's attire._

" _Yeeeah," Angela replied, a little mocking of his reaction, "it was when I popped in to collect Justice's medication for Diane. He didn't mind," she smiled._

" _Oh, Ange, of course he didn't mind, you probably made his day!" he laughed pulling her towards him and into an embrace, "you look incredible, so, so hot," he added as he kissed her on the cheek, "leave the costume here when you go to Madison!" She slapped him playfully on the bottom, "Cheeky!"_

…

"Truth be told I actually saw you before then, don't think you can call it meeting as such because we didn't speak," Angela began.

Cary tilted his head and looked at Angela, "What do you mean?"

"I think it was your first day at Stern, Lockhart & Gardner, you started a few days before Alicia. I'd given Will a ride to work and we were saying goodbye in the parking structure, you walked past and said good morning to Will."

Cary rested the tip of his tongue on the roof of his mouth and gave a confused smile, as he was unable to place her. "I, I, can't remember," he stuttered as he narrowed his eyes and thought back to his first day, after a few seconds, he recalled a memory of seeing his new boss embracing a woman, "oh God! That was you," he chuckled.

"What?" Alicia asked insistently.

Cary cleared his throat and thought of how he could diplomatically explain the scene involving his late boss to Alicia, "Let's just say that Will and Angela were quite affectionate towards each other," he smiled, pausing a little before he added, "Will didn't even notice me!"

…

 _ **Flashback:**_

 _Angela looked at Will, "Who's the kid in the Brioni?"_

 _"New junior associate. He's gonna be Alicia's competition," he bowed his head as he said it._

" _Ohhhh," Angela exhaled, "Diane's new protégé."_

 _Will smiled, "Yeah, something like that. I'm grateful for David siding with me to even get Alicia in the door." Angela smiled and nodded, recognising the presence of David Lee._

" _So, you should go," she said as she gazed up at him, moving her hands back up to his neck, "can't have the new junior associate making the boss look tardy."_

" _Mm-hmm," Will mumbled as he kissed Angela again. As they broke away from each other, he added, "I don't think you should have broken it off with Frank, go see him, it could work."_

" _I dunno," she sighed, "long distance mate, might not."_

" _Well it won't if you don't give it a chance," he laughed. Angela smiled at him, and, placing her hands on his waist slid off the bonnet of her car. "Maybe," she added as she reached inside his suit jacket, her hands meeting in the small of his back, "I don't want to hurt him if it doesn't work further down the line, my track record isn't great, he deserves great."_

" _You're great," he smiled and kissed her cheek._

…..

Alicia checked her watch, it was later than she had thought. She should go as she had an early start the following day; she said goodnight and left.

Cary took a deep breath and turned to Angela, "So you know Kalinda?"

"Yeah," Angela confirmed, "we didn't exactly hit it off to begin with, but we knew where each other was coming from and would both protect Will at all costs, so became friends."

"She never mentioned you," Cary replied.

"She didn't mention her husband until she had to. Kalinda plays things close to the chest and I respect that. We all need to have secrets."

Cary nodded, "Yeah," as he took a long pull of his whisky. "I miss her, been a long time. When did you last see her?" he asked, unprepared for Angela's response.

"November," Angela replied. Cary's face went pale and he looked directly into her eyes, "What?" he asked hesitantly .

 **A/N: So this was a modern-day update to get the main story back on track. What do you think should happen now?**


	32. Chapter 31

**A/N: Thanks again for all the reviews and follows. I can't believe it is now a year since I first started this story (9/25)! Just a little update for now to complete the conversation between Angela and Cary. More to come soon.**

Chicago, September 2016

 _._

 _I'll Be There For You_ (The Rembrandts)

.

 _This follows on immediately from Chapter 30_.

Cary felt his pulse quicken and his temperature drop at the mention of Kalinda, he was excited and eager to hear about his friend, but scared for her if she was back in Chicago - back within the clutches of Lemond Bishop. Trying to compose himself and put a little colour back into his cheeks, he took a large mouthful of the whisky he was cradling and breathed out deeply. "You saw her in November?" he asked.

"Yes," Angela replied, nodding gently at Cary, "I know that will be a shock to you," she added.

Cary pulled his head back a little, smiling in surprise, "Yeahhhh, it is," he said eventually. "Kalinda left for her own safety. She saved Diane and she saved me. She sacrificed her freedom and her life in Chicago for us," he said candidly, honestly and with emotion. Cary really did care for Kalinda Sharma and wasn't afraid to admit it to the near-stranger in front of him, as he knew enough about her to know she cared deeply for those associated with Lockhart/Gardner and was trusted with secrets.

Angela smiled at him, leaning forward in her chair, resting her elbows on her knees. Before she began to speak, Cary chuckled a little to himself. "What?" Angela questioned.

"It's just, with the outfit you're wearing and that pose, you really do remind me of Will," he said softly with a hint of humour, "sorry, go on."

Angela smiled and felt a pang of sadness in her own stomach equal to that Cary likely felt in his; looking down she had rolled the sleeves of her shirt up to the elbows and was wearing light wool slacks in a French navy, with her body language she was echoing Will. It was always nice to be reminded of him. She let the feeling wash over her and began to explain to Cary.

"Kalinda had some files from Will's computer that she felt needed to come back to me. Personal files, things Will had kept about me, about our life," she added before swilling the liquid around her glass, "she came to my apartment to give them to me."

"Why did she wait until last year? Was she in danger?" he said hurriedly.

"You might not know, but I was out of the country when Will died, working with Doctors Without Borders, and by the time I returned to the US, Kalinda had left Chicago." Cary looked around Angela's face for more information; she continued with her story.

"I imagine she couldn't return before November. She was out of state. I know where she was immediately prior to coming to me, but I don't know where she had been in between or where she is now," she clarified.

Cary didn't know what to say, he wanted to know as much as Angela did and was ravenous for information. He knew Kalinda had met with Alicia just before she left for good, but struggled to believe that K also met Angela, but ignored him, unless she really was in danger and was scared for his safety. He hated that they couldn't see each other for fear of reprisals and threats of violence. "I know it is the obvious question, but where had she been?" he asked.

"Canada," Angela answered, "she was in Montreal before she travelled to Chicago. She felt safe enough to come then but she didn't stay long."

"Ohh-kay," Cary replied, "did she leave the same evening?"

"Yes. She had been in my apartment for a few hours, waiting for me to come home. We talked, we drank, then she left. She knows she is free to return when she can. She has a key."

Cary shook his head in bewilderment, "She has a key to your apartment?" he asked for clarification.

"Yes," Angela nodded, "I live in Will's apartment and he gave her a key when all the crap with Nick Savarese cropped up, so she had a safe place. The sentiment was reiterated when he died and Will left the apartment to me," she smiled at him, "he knew I wouldn't sell it, so it could remain a bolthole for those who need it."

Cary nodded, "Wow, I had no idea. Will could be an ass at times, but he did have a caring side then," he smiled back at Angela.

"Yes," she nodded, "I've said this to many people over the years, but _my Will_ , was very different to courtroom Will. He cared and loved very deeply."

"He loved Alicia," Cary commented, a little uncertain, although he had come to realise the feelings his former boss and his former partner shared, "and she him," he concluded.

"Yes," Angela confirmed, "Will loved Alicia and Alicia cared for him. For many years it was a one-sided, unrequited love," she said before taking a drink of her bourbon. "But, getting back to K, he trusted, respected and loved her, _differently_ , obviously," she chuckled, "taking her to bed was something he never once considered," she laughed. "I think she was too much, even for Will!" Cary laughed with Angela and thought that, wow, he had (partially) tamed a wild beast too kinky for Will. "But," she said pointedly, "she was loyal to L/G and to him, so he saw that it was paid back."

"With the key?" Cary asked.

"Not just with the key," she answered, "Kalinda will always survive, but at times she thought she might have had to disappear, to reinvent herself again, so she made arrangements, financial, legal etc. to ensure she could leave if necessary. Will helped her."

Cary smiled again at the thought of Will, a morally dubious lawyer he had once prosecuted via a Grand Jury, helping Kalinda stay safe. "How?" he asked.

Angela shook her head, "Doesn't matter. But, she has access to what she needs. She also has a safe place whenever she needs it in Chicago and, also, if she ever goes there, a place in the UK."

"The UK?" Cary asked.

"Yeah," Angela said quietly, "my Dad is English and although he sold my grandparents' sprawling country home, he didn't sell the small Cornish cottage they maintained as a holiday home." Cary lent forward with increasing interest. Angela continued, I used to go there as a child with my Dad and grandparents on school holidays, but haven't been in years. In fact, the last time I was there was with Will, over a decade ago. It isn't as if my Dad really goes there, but it is a great holiday let, so he rents it out to holidaymakers – it is quite the goldmine!" she laughed.

"So, Kalinda has a key to this place too?"

"Well, no," she said shaking her head, "I don't have a key to it. My Dad does, somewhere, but she just needs to get in contact with the letting agent, the realtor, and she can have it. Just as I would if I ever went to Newquay. Don't worry, she doesn't have to use her own name."

Cary smiled at the thought, the unbelievable idea in fact, of Kalinda in a small Cornish town, eating scones and watching the tide roll in. "Has she been there?" he asked.

"I don't know," she replied as she finished her drink. Cary sat back in his chair and contemplated the information he had just gleaned from Angela. Perhaps Kalinda wasn't gone from his life forever.

…

 **A/N: Let me know what you think. More Alicia and some flashbacks to come soon.**


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